Two-Nature
by PyroMidnightAngel
Summary: A shifter couple moves into Atlanta. With them comes smart-mouthed, highly sarcastic and rebellious fourteen year old Seleyda Farrer, whose version of fun means pissing off Curran, Beast Lord of Atlanta. The People accidentally summoned a vampire god, and who better to take the job but the Beast Lord and his sugar woogums? But why does Seleyda conveniently vanish every full moon?
1. Chapter 1

**Ilona Andrews own the kate daniels series.**

_A/N: Bear with me here. I didn't plan on writing this down anywhere, but the story was too appealing to resist._

Un-beta'd

Chapter 1- Seeing Is Believing

* * *

Curran growled at the sixtieth petition from some whiny shifter who felt he was being overlooked. One of the wolves stepped in. "What?"

"T-The n-n-new shifters a-are h-here, Your Majesty," he stuttered. Curran blinked, staring up at the clock by the wall. They are on time, he thought. Good. He rolled his sore shoulders a couple of times. Maybe Mahon was right; I should've gotten someone to take care of this shit. "T-They are i-in the meeting room, s-sire."

"Just give me a moment." Curran rose from his creaking chair, custom made to hold his size and weight.

The group was an unusual case; not unlike Curran and Kate's situation. The boy was a wolf shifter, the girl human. but they carried along baggage. In the size of a loud-mouthed, sharp-tongued fourteen year old of dubious background. Her name was Seleyda Farrer. Parent must've gotten a little too creative with naming the child. Anyway, as far as anyone could tell, the girl was bouda. Wolves and bouda don't mix well even in the best of situations. Something about wolves' innate need for reserve and sophistication and bouda's inability to stop cracking bad jokes at all times. They were hiding something; Curran knew.

Kate fell into step beside Curran. It was the day again. Kate sighed with reluctance. Barrabas (_AlN: Sry dunno how to spell it_) opened the door for them. The young wolf had conveniently made himself scarce. The new shifter couple, alongside their humongous pain in the ass, turned at the sound. The female flinched, and the shifter placed an arm around her small waist to soothe her. The girl simply glared at the newcomers, grey eyes flashing. Her scent screamed bouda, but also something else, something that Curran couldn't determine.

The couple stepped back as the Beast Lord and Consort brushed past them. The girl, Seleyda, merely stood where she did, causing her to brush just past them. Barrabas snarled. Seleyda smirked. "Cat got your tongue, sugarlips?"

"I could wipe the floor with you with my eyes closed," he hissed.

She smirked. "Funny, I fought a werejaguar twice your shifter size last year. Last time I checked, I'm still alive." Her eyes flashed red, but vanished. Control. Impressive as hell control. She bared her teeth. _Bring it, _she almost seemed to say.

"Barrabas," Kate warned. He took a deep breath and let it out slowly.

"Yes, Consort," he replied. Seleyda didn't miss the grimace that flashed across Kate's face.

"_Consort?"_ She mocked. "So _you're _his widely known sugar woogums. What did you do, huh, duel to the death and end up on the bed?" They flinched. Curran growled. "I'm right, aren't I?"

"Didn't your mother teach you manners?" Curran snarled. Something flashed across her eyes, then vanished entirely. Her expression froze for the briefest second, before the sarcastic smirk came back on, full fledged.

"Sorry, _sir_," she drawled. "She didn't have a chance since _loups_ and humans _killed_ her when I was _one_." Curran flinched.

"I'm sorry," he apologised gruffly.

"No need. I'm sure I benefited from the lack thereof parents nagging me twenty-four seven." Kate opened her mouth, but the female beside the shifter beat her to the punch.

"Eda," she warned. "That's pushing the envelope." She turned to Curran, contrite and parental exasperation colouring her features. "I'm sorry, sir, but she'd been running wild for a very long time. My husband and I are still trying to teach her how to behave."

Curran picked up on the key word. "Wild?"

The female sighed. "Yes, she was running half-wild for most of her formative years." At this, Seleyda snorted. The female shot her a death glare. "Her pursuers didn't give her much of a choice." A fierce look filled her face.

"How young was she when she shifted, Miss..."

The female smiled. "Just call me Ana, sir." She bit her lip. "I'm not sure, since Eda never spoke about it."

"From birth." Seleyda's eyes were steely. "Mom had given birth to me when she was six months pregnant. Loupism saved my ass, helping me gain the weight I needed. That was how I escaped."

"How long did you stay shifted?" Kate asked.

Seleyda shrugged. "Dunno. I was captured by hunters after that, and shipped off somewhere. Didn't dare shift back." Her lips twisted into a smile too old for her young face. "Let's just say they had..._unusual_ tastes in pets." Curran growled in understanding. Human trafficking, or more correctly, _shapeshifter _trafficking. "And then there was the White Coats." Kate raised an eyebrow, curious.

""You know, scientists. Researchers. Seekers of higher knowledge?" She ended in disgust. "Enough about me. Ana and Drew need to know; yes or no?"

They looked taken aback. The male shifter, Drew, and Ana, looked as if they were suffering the diatribe of a five year old. "What?" Seleyda rolled her eyes.

"Are they accepted into the Beast Lord's menagerie or not," she inquired sarcastically. Curran growled. Played, he thought. He'd been played by a child half his age. That's when he noticed her looks. The strong square jaw, arched brows befitting an Egyptian queen, her pale blond curls, and slender built.

"Whose your mother?"

"Angelique Maitland." Seleyda paused. "She was from Clan Bouda in Atlanta."

Curran felt his stomach lurch.

Fuck shit. _Angelique._

_**A/N: R&R please! 10 reviews is all I ask!**_


	2. Chapter 2

**Ilona Andrews own the kate daniels series.**

_A/N: Hi. Sorry for the wait. This chapter will be split between Curran explaining and Seleyda being further explored. *wink*wink* _

Un-beta'd

Chapter 2- Court

* * *

"Alright, recess!" Kate shouted, slamming her hand on the massive table. "Barabas! Escort the guests to the waiting room." Barabas nodded, keeping a firm hand on Drew and Ana's shoulder. Seleyda glared at the ashen faced Curran and grim Kate before following them.

"Curran?" Kate asked once the door clicked shut. "Do you know her?"

Curran shook his head. "I knew her mother." He suddenly couldn't swallow properly. "She was my fiancee."

"What?!"

* * *

"What the hell, Ana!" Drew shouted. Ana winced. "Why didn't you tell me she's from here?" He paced around the circular room, like a stalking predator, muttering obscenities. Half of which weren't even anatomically possible.

"How was I supposed to know?" ana exclaimed. "I may know Eda better than you, but that doesn't mean I know everything there is to her past!" She gripped her arms violently. _And the little that I _do _know already features in most of my nightmares._

"Wait, a second." They turned to look at Seleyda. "This is Atlanta?" They nodded. Hurt, fear and confusion coloured her eyes. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"Didn't you take a look at the clearance stamp from the airport?"

Seleyda rapidly shook her head. She spun wildly, her body shimmering as she fought to remain in human form. Barabas detached himself from his spot against the wall, his eyes flaring green. _I'm not suppposed to be here, I _can't _be here. _"Seleyda?"

"I have to leave." In a flash, Barabas was at the door, hands spread out to cover its width. Seleyda skittered back, pupils dilating. "You don't understand!" She screamed. "My mom-" she took a deep breath and continued in a louder voice," - she told me to never set foot in Atlanta."

Barabas' eyes narrowed. "Why?"

"I don't know!" She screamed. "It was a ritual we had. Every day when I wake and before I close my eyes to sleep she would always say, ' And you must never set foot in Atlanta.' She curled up into a ball on the floor and threw her arms around the girl, humming soothingly. Drew stood staring; transfixed by the sight before him.

* * *

Curran raised both his hands, palms facing a fuming Kate. "Let me explain."

Kate huffed, but dragged her chair so that she was oppsite him. It dimly resembled an interrogation, which made Curran chuckle in memory. (A/N: Magic Bleeds) He quickly turned it into a cough as he saw the look on Kate's face. Slowly, she placed her sword, Slayer, on the block of wood between them. "It had better be good," she growled.

He ran a hand over his face. _How am I supposed to explain this without her trying to take a hack at me and not sound like the idiot that I was? _"I became Beast Lord after bringing in Andorf's head, as you may know." Kate nodded. _Of course she did. I was there when Raphael explained it to her. _" What Raphael didn't, or rather _couldn't_ tell you- he was a little too young to remember the details, you see- was that a number of the older shifters was completely against having me as their new ruler. I may have proven myself to be fit to rule, but I was too _young._" Curran smirked to himself at the memory. "The exact word they used was _inexperienced._" Kate snorted. They both knew Curran was more than capable of ruling the shapeshifters of Atlanta. "We would've eventually tore each other apart-" Kate shuddered. Curran smiled at her."- but Mahon convinced me to try his plan, which he said if it failed, I could still have the heads of all the old biddies who've sat too long and grown too fat on their thrones." Kate grinned, but then sobered up.

"What does this have to do with your _fiancee_?" Curran winced. _This was not good._

"Mahon suggested that I take a bride from amongst the ranks of the shapeshifters." He braced himself for the explosion.

"WHAT!" Kate shot upright, fuming and cursing away. Her sword was in her hand and it smoked, fueled by her anger. "How the hell did that fucking bear come up with _that _stupid idea? A _bride_? To the brand-spanking-new-fifteen-year-old-hormone-riddled-BEAST-LORD-OF-_ATLANTA_?" She screamed.

"It would bridge the gap between me and my people, since they know nothing of me," Curran tried to explain. "It was only on the engaged state, since I wasn't legally of age to marry. Yet." _Now I sound like Mahon. _"Kate, please, listen to me. I'm with you now, aren't I? I didn't marry her, nor will I ever be able to marry her, since she's dead now." Curran winced as a sudden thought hit him. Kate stopped, seeing the look of pain in his face. She strode back to his side. Wrapping both hands around his skull, she kneaded careful circles into his temple. Slowly, Curran relaxed.

"Better?" Curran nodded. She went on for a couple more minutes, before settling down. "What's wrong?"

"I'll have to report her death to Aunt B." Kate frowned, crossing her arms.

"Aunt B? Why on earth would you have to-" Kate's eyes widened. She backed away from the table. "No way. Nuh-uh. You've got to be joking with me. Please tell me this is a joke. Curran?"

_I'm sorry._ "Angelique Maitland's middle name is Medrano." He rested his pounding head on the heel of his palm. "As in Beatrice _Medrano's _niece by her older sister." He sighed. "Alexandria will be heartbroken to hear this; she's Angie's mother."

_"Angie?_"

"Please, Kate. I can't possibly tell you how sorry I am about this whole mess. Before today, I would've never believed that Angelique still lived, or even had a daughter. She'd left us with a lot of unanswered questions and even more so with the arrival of her daughter. In face, I'll be sorely hard-pressed to believe that anything short of a silver cannon could've killed her." Curran stared at the grainy table, thinking hard. "I'd been given the choice of choosing my br-fiancee," he hastily changed as he glanced up to see the look of bloody murder on Kate's face, "from the five that Mahon selected. I didn't choose Angie because she was the most _biddable-" _The word tasted sour in his mouth."- I choose her because she had the strongest beast-form alive, second only to B and me."

Kate was silent for a moment. "Was she pretty?"

A weak, relieved, exasperated laugh erupted from Curran. "I just told you she was one of the strongest shifter alive and you ask me _how pretty she is?_ Good lord, Kate!" Kate crossed her legs, tapping them impatiently against the arm chair. "Okay, okay." He took out his wallet and flipped it open. Kate edged closer, curious. Curran smirked at her. She scowled. He flipped up the photograph of him, Kate and Julie from Christmas, revealing a thick seam slicing the leather across the center. The seam unravelled itself as Curran ran his right thumb across it; it was a slim knot. "She dabbled a little in magic before she became a shifter at thirteen," he explained at Kate's confusion. "Never lost the knack for it. Could channel shifter magic into her own too." Kate's expression became pensive, thoughtful.

The knot came off, revealing a yellowed photograph of a woman with long pinwheel curls and laughing eyes that were still green. Her lips were a work of art; full and luscious at the bottom, begging to be ravished upon, cupid-bowed and sensitive on top, a succulent treat in the night. They were forever in one type or another of smiles. Her posture was straight and tall, but not stiff. She radiated love and kindness, even from the grave, shining with joy everyday that he knew her. With a pang, Curran realized he'd loved her, not just as the surrogate mother she tried to be. He shied away from his last memory of her, before she broke his heart.

"Oh," Kate murmured. "I see where Seleyda inherited her bearing from." She examined the picture, no bigger than a two-by-four centimetres photograph. "They both carry themselves like queen, don't they?"

"Yes," Curran agreed, slightly distracted. "B used to say she would've made a fantastic queen, like those of old. She'd gone even as far as to say she's the equal of some ancient Egyptian queen. Nefetiri or something like that."

"Nefertiti?" Kate corrected, eyes suddenly piercing. "Is that what she meant?"

Curran nodded. "Why?"

"Curran, Nefertiti was the co-ruler of one of the most notable pharaohs of Egyptain history, Akhenaten. The only one more famous than her is Cleopatra. Nefertiti and her husband started a religion _revolution_, Curran, and might have won if they had lived longer. She contributed a major part to the conversion and was a legendary beauty, which she used to full potential for her husband. Do you understand, Curran? Aunt B was implying that Angelique would take the same role as Nefertiti took, to forge a new era and make you a great ruler. Mahon might have had the same idea as well," she added in a low voice, but Curran heard her nevertheless. "Damn it all, they were _both_ trying to make you their puppet." Curran blinked. "Were there any other reasons why you chose her, Curran?"

"I don't-I don't believe it," he said. He clenched his jaw and thought carefully. "I chose Angelique because she was also from Clan Bouda. If you recall-"  
Kate nodded. '-before I took up the reins, they were an exceptionally small clan. I figured the best way to make peace with them was to make sure they didn't go into extinction, which they were extremely close to. She was a great fighter, which I would need if they ever turned on me-" he levelled a rage-filled glare at Kate. She flinched. _It's not for me,_ she thought. _It's for the shifters who tried to kill_ me. "-as they did on you. I'm so sorry, Kate, I-" she pressed a finger to his lips.

"No need. You would've fought for me as I did, if anything had happened to me." Kate smiled. Curran smiled, relieved, and got up from his seat. He crushed Kate's smaller form to his, breathing in her scent.

"Yes, I would have." He sighed. "But Beatrice still needs to know about this."

"Couldn't we tell her at a better time? I mean, with the mess Andrea has left across the city...things are a little touchy between you and the boudas."

"I know, but the last time I withheld information about Angelique from her, this was my souvenir," Curran said, indicating his nose, with its uneven ridge. Kate stared, then shuddered. Curran winced, knowing exactly which lecture he was about to receive VIP treatment to. The you-should-have-gone-after-her-and-chased-her-to-the-end-of-the-world-and-now-look-what-you've-done-to-my-baby-girl-how-am-I-supposed-to-tell-Alexandria-about-this lecture. He could feel the wounds from the last time he'd heard _that_ one. It was close to six hours long. Not that he could blame Aunt B.

A/N: Thank you thank you for the reviews (even though there were only two). But I'm not complaining. Here's chapter two. R&R please.


	3. Chapter 3

**Ilona Andrews own the kate daniels series.**

_A/N: Here comes the rest of Kate's crew:D_

Un-beta'd

Chapter 3- Unnatural

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Seleyda settled down on the lush couch, greedily sucking up the drink in a plastic bottle and rapidly munching on the baked potato slathered with butter in her hand. Every few minutes, she would stick out one butter-covered hand and Ana would pass her another potato. Or she would give her the bottle to be given another freshly filled one moments later. It was like a dance between two professional artists, if it weren't such an overwhelming display of gluttony.

Barabas stared at the sight with mild disbelief. Ana smiled at the look on his face. "No, she isn't."

Barabas blinked. "What?"

"She isn't a wererat," she explained. "Seleyda's a bouda, though and through. If she were any more like them she'd be going at it like a bitch in heat and not knowing when to stop." Barabas smirked.

"We already have one like that here. Ascanio Ferara's his name. Stay away from him at all costs."

Drew snickered. "What, another hotshot who thinks he's God's gift to women of all ages from all walks of life and works it like a charm?" Barabas gaped at him. "The girls have handled worst. Just point them towards his direction and let them loose. There won't be anything left." Barabas raised an eyebrow. Ana pinched his cheek. "Ouch!"

She smiled, and kissed him exactly where she'd just pinched red. "I'm not a toy, Drew. Please remember that." Drew gulped.

"The boy started a threesome on the courthouse steps. He lives and breathes trouble," Barabas continued. Ana frowned.

"On second thought, I think you shouldn't take this lightly, Drew." Ana smiled, a spark in her eyes that spoke of trouble of the male kind. Drew immediately wrapped a possessive hand around Ana's waist. Ana grinned beatifically. "Good choice. We promised to be honest to each other," Ana explained. "It's healthier this way." Barabas chuckled.

"What about her?" He indicated the still-eating Seleyda. Drew smirked.

"She's more likely to chew his head off than fall to her feet and worship him."

"Ascanio's only second to the male bouda alpha, Raphael," Barabas added.

His eyes twinkled with amusement. "Just a stray thought, but how good is the boy's beast form?" The beast form is a shapeshifter's warrior form, a monstrous mismash of human and animal to form an upright, clawed and fanged monster who could rip a man apart without a second thought. It also takes alot of discipline and training to acquire and support it for a substantial amount of time.

Barabas looked warily at them. "Why?"

"Seleyda ripped an alpha wolf apart without even using a full warrior form. Do you still think he has any chance of surviving if Seleyda took him seriously?" Ana poked him in the ribs. "Okay, okay, Ana. that's all I'm telling him. I remember the last time." Barabas looked horrified.

"What the hell have you guys been through?"

"Hell." Barabas blinked, turning to face Seleyda. "We've been through hell and back."

The second door on the opposite side of the dome-shaped room slid quietly open. Jezebel peeked into the room. "Call the Consort. Her friend Andrea urgently needs to speak with her." A hand pushed her aside, revealing Andrea, looking worried and just about ready to go furry. She scanned the room with her blue eyes, frowning at the unfamilliar faces around her. Her gaze flickered to Barabas. "Please."

Barabas sighed. "Okay." He gave the group a warning glared. "Stay here and wait for me."

Seleyda smirked. "Yes, _Mom._" She shared a knowing look with Ana. Suddenly, she froze. "You smell of vampires." Barabas shot a startled glance at Andrea, who was a good ten feet away from Seleyda, looking just as unsettled. Shapeshifters were reknowed for exceptional tracking abilities, but not to this extent. For a moment, no one moved.

Seleyda's eyes flashed red as she snarled. "Tell me before I rip both of you into shreds with none the wiser."

Andrea hesitated. "It's Ghastek's vampire you smell. He needs the Consort's help." She sent a pleading glance to Barabas. "Please."Andrea turned to look at Seleyda, but frowned. _Something's not_ _right_.

Seleyda snorted, polishing off the last of the buttered potatoes. "Why would the second most powerful Master of the Dead in Atlanta be interested in-" she stopped, eyes narrowing. "Cutting Edge Investigations? Is he hiring the Consort for a job?" Andrea took a step back, completely stunned.

"What?" She exclaimed. "How d-did you k-know?" Seleyda shrugged.

"Through the grapevine."

Barabass cleared his throat. Everyone turned to stare at him. "My apologises. This is the Wren family." Seleyda snorted. He ignored her. "They are here for a group interview from the Beast Lord, since it's a special case. The man there-"he indicated Drew"- is Andrew Wren, husband to Ana Farrer-Wren-" Ana flushed, waving enthusiastically, while Drew scowled but inclined his head. "The loud-mouthed teenager is their ward, Seleyda _Medrano _Farrer." Andrea stared at her in shock.

"You're Raphael's?"

A male voice spoke as he walked up to Andrea stared. "Honey, I'm so sorry I took so long to get here. I had to fight for the last parking lot since the bull-headed Mahon refused to park his monstrous car anywhere-" he stopped short, staring at Seleyda. His jaw worked for a long moment, but no sound came out. "Aunt Lexie? Why are you here? Aren't you supposed to be in Aspen?"

If her eyebrows could go any higher, they'd vanish into her hairline. "Wha-at?" She frowned, rubbing the bridge of her nose. Andrea's eyes narrowed. Where have I seen that before? Seleyda shook her head. "Nope. Dunno anyone by that name. You must've mistaken me for someone else."

"No," Raphael said. "You really resemble my aunt. Not a twin, but close enough to have to be a relative. Whose kid are you?"

"She's your niece, Raphael,"Barabas replied. "Angelique's daughter," she added in a lower voice. Raphael stood there, looking at Seleyda. He looked blank. Completely blank, as if he was gazing at something that had broken his brain.

"Raphael?" andrea asked worriedly. A muscle twitched on the side of his mouth. He opened his mouth. Nothing came out."Congrats. You're an uncle."His jaw finally worked. He swore.

"I have a niece?" He whispered, sounding almost terrified.

"I have an uncle?" Seleyda echoed in horror. "A _bouda_ uncle?"

His jaw tightened. "What did you expect? That your mom is a first generation shifter?" She's pretty much the bouda equivalent of a princess, girl. Say, where _is_ Angelique?" Seleyda's face darkened.

"She's dead."

"Oh." Raphael slid his hands into his jeans' pocket. "I'm sorry."

Seleyda shuffled her feet. "So, the Aunt Lexie you were talking about. She's my grandma, then?"

"Yeah, sure." Raphael was excited. "I'll have to tell my mom and ask her to call them back. If you'd like," he quickly added. "This must be quite..._overwhelming_ for you." Seleyda raised her eyebrows.

"Them?"

"Mm-hm. There's Uncle Dan- well, it'll be _Grandpa _Dan to you. He's going to be _stoked_ at becoming a grandfather," he explained. "Your mom was only the second in the family. But she's the only girl who survived, so you only have a couple of uncles and such. Mom's gonna _flip_ when she finds out."

"Who's your mom?"

"Aunt B, or Beatrice, female alpha of Clan Bouda. You're gonna love her. She'll spoil you rotten the moment she sees you." Raphael smiled almost dotingly. "Heck, I would too. You're too skinny for your own good." Seleyda's face became closed. She wrapped a hand around Ana, away from Drew. Drew released her.

"I don't want to meet her."

Jezebel opened the door leading to where the Beast Lord and Consort awaited before Raphael could formulate an answer. Seleyda hissed. Ana pressed her small hand against Seleyda's cheek. "Calm down. Please." Seleyda bared her teeth at them, but didn't snap. Jezebel looked at them for a long moment, then said, "They are ready." Seleyda straightened her clothes and smoothed Ana's jacket out. She took a couple of deep breaths and eventually calmed down. Ana looked up, a searching look on her face. Slowly, a smile lit up her face, catapulting her from pretty to stunning. The smile Seleyda answered her with was almost blinding. Andrea finally noticed what was wrong with Seleyda's face.

_Her face._ At first glance, she resembled a seventeen-eighteen year old female, with strong cheekbones and an angular jaw. But at closer inspection, the skin was tightly stretched over her cheeks. Faint circles hung under her grey eyes, which gave a greenish tint when she'd smiled. She'd been starved, continuously over a substantial amount of time; it's a well-known fact that the face was the last place a body lost fat. If this was any indication of how starved the girl had been, it had to be recent, and there had to be worst damage on the rest of her body.

"Let's go, Andrea," Raphael said, hand on her arm. Andrea shookv herself out of her reverie. "Kate would want to see us first." He levelled a warning glare at Ana and Drew, but softened when they reached Seleyda. "Please wait for me here. After you're done. I promise I won't tell my mother." _Yet._

Seleyda stared at him through narrowed eyes. "Sure."

**A/N: Finally! Hope you guys enjoy! **


	4. Chapter 4

**Ilona Andrews own the kate daniels series.**

_A/N: Seleyda's POV. Enjoy!_

Un-beta'd

Chapter 4 - Super

* * *

Ana stared at me in surprise as the man who's supposedly my uncle vanished behind the wooden door. "You actually let someone go. A _bouda_."

I shrugged. Finding a chair, I pulled it against the wall and seated myself. "I _can _be reasonable. Ana. Now, hush." I closed my eyes and concentrated, augumenting my ear's hearing to receive higher frequencies.

"What is she trying to do?" Barabas asked. It sounded like a thunderclap.

"ARGH!" I exclaimed. The chair skidded beneath me and I fell off. My elbow hit the stone floor first first, at the wrong angle. A sickening pop sounded. My arm started to burn. "Ow!"

"Oh my god, are you okay?" Barabas asked, startled and worried. He took a step closer. He gaped at the sight of my arm hanging in a distinctly off angle.

"NO!" I scrambled upright, careful not to jostle my arm, "It's okay. I can do this myself." I tried to smile through the tears running down my face, but it must've come out wrong, since Barabas paled. "Really. This happens all the time."

I scooted back near the wall. My breath was coming in shallow gasps. I was hyperventillating. The pain was making me hyperventillate. Using the wall as a support, I took a firm grip of my dislocated arm and jammed it back into the socket. I gasped at the sudden relief the action gave me, and quickly wiped off my tears. I moved my arm gingerly, testing it. Good as new.

"Is that an old injury?" Jezebel asked.

I was wary. "Why?"

"I've seen this before, but only ever in ol-more _experienced_ fighters," she quickly amended at the warning look in Drew's eyes. "It appears when a fighter goes through severe continuous trauma over a very short period of time on a small area. The cartilage and bone don't 'bond' as well as they used to and dislocation becomes a frequent occurrence." She frowned a little, looking at me from head to toe. "Judging from your height, the guy would have to be around five eleven to six feet to deliver the maximum damage here-" she indicated half an inch above my elbow joint. "-and leave lingering side-effects on a shapeshifter. He probably has a hundred pounds on you at least, to be able to pin you down and make near perfect hits to the same area, and is probably much stronger than you." I growled. He wasn't stronger than me. I was just stupid. Jezebel gave me a look. You know the one.

"You're still growing into your power as a teenager. But-" she gripped my face when I decided not to look at her. "- you are not a fighter to be underestimated. Even with the average human brawler you will probably be at an advantage. Therefore the fighter who inflicted such damage to your arm is also a shapeshifter, someone who's along the lines of bears and the like. Heavyweights. He's also very experienced. It can't be a woman because we do not possess the ability to train up the level of strength required to do such damage." Wow. And I thought Sherlock Holmes was a myth.

"So, who did this?" She finally asked.

I glared at her. "Why do you want to know? You're not my mother!" Jezebel flinched. Barabas embraced her in a hug that would have been tender had the veins in his neck not been bulging.

"I'm sorry," he apologised. "We'd recently lost someone. Jezebel was..._traumatised_ by the whole incident."

"Joey," I whispered. "His name was Joey. From Clan Bouda. You babysitted him often." I felt his soul's presence, begging to be released. I gripped my shoulders. _No._ _Ahissa. _Flee. He screamed at me, the black hands of Mara dragging him back to be judged. Good Lord. It's my first time summoning a spirit before it's been judged.

"H-How did you know?" She asked shakily. Only seconds must've passed. That's new. New's not good.

"It's not something I'd like to have publised," I whispered.

Jezebel relaxed against Barabas' arms. "Did you see him?"

"Yes."

"Was he-" she swallowed. "-Did he look...okay?"

"If he hasn't done anything bad, he's going to be fine there."

Silence.

"Does failing to protect a minor count?" Barabas asked.

"Depends."

"On what?"

"On how the future of the minor changed becuase of him. If it's good, then he goes through safely. If it's bad, then he gets a first class ticket to hell." Just like that idiot who broke my arm.

"The girl made it out alive," Jezebel whispered. "Does that count?" She looked down at me, eyes pleading.

"Yes."

Jezebel sagged against Barabas' constricting arms. "I'm fine now, Barabas. You can let me go." Barabas looked at Jezebel for a long moment. He let her go. She launched herself at me. I tensed. Solar plexus or jugular? Jezebel held me close to her. For a moment, I was stunned. Then, her shoulders shook, and I realized. She was crying. "Thank you," she whispered.

"Erm, you're welcome." She cried some more. I stared at her, stunned. I quickly looked up at Ana. _What am I supposed to do? _I mouthed.

_Just hug her back. Pretend I'm her. _ Ana mouthed back.

_Pretend _this Hispanic woman was my porcelain-skinned Ana?! I stared at Jezebel, who continued to cry. What the hell.

I wrapped my arm around her, pressing my head against hers. Her small, controlled whimpers turned into bawls. Great. My shirt probably won't survive this.

Finally, she settled down. Her eyes were still red, but at least she didn't have anymore mucus on her face. Surprisingly, my shirt survive the storm. I stared at the wall. Is there anymore that I can hear that'll be useful?

"Seleyda?" She asked.

"Yes?" I answered queitly.

"Can I ask something?" Jezebel questioned.

"Okay."

"Who did that to you? The arm, I mean." Not the talking and summoning the dead thing, I suppose. I frowned, trying to remember the first.

"Werepuma. Male. Monstrous size. I think he was in his mid-thirties. He was half-loup, judging by the smell of his blood. Stronger because of it. He did an arm-lock on this-" I indicated my newly-working arm. "-and bashed it into a nearby boulder many, many times. He shredded and dislocated it."

"H-How old were you?"

I frowned. "I was seven. I was running away from someone, he was in my way. Why?"

"I can count on one hand how many shapeshifters can take down a loup with odds against them. All of them are adults." She swallowed. "You did kill him, right?"

"Yeah."

"Who healed you?"

"A werebear. I called him Pooki." I smiled, remembering the clumsy-looking giant who blotted out the sky when he stood above me, whose hands were anything but. "He was...family."

"Why did you want to sit beside that wall?" Barabas asked.

"I was trying to eavesdrop." Barabas gave me the look most people reserved for the mentally unsound.

"The meeting room was built like a bunker and soundproofed from supernatural hearing. Shapeshifters, vampires and the like have been tested to hear not a pin drop from the room." I tried not to laugh. Not _this _shapeshifter.

"You can try," Barabas said smugly.

Barabas," Jezebel said. "Shut up."

Silence.

"Wha-at?" Barabas exclaimed. "Jez, are you listening to yourself?"

"If Seleyda can talk to the dead, wouldn't you say, _Barabas_, that chances are she would have other abilities outside of the norm." She looked at me. "Isn't that so?" Thank you Lord, I said in thought.

"Yeah, sure."

Turns out, I didn't need to.

_"I'M NOT LETTING MY WIFE HELP THE PEOPLE JUST BECAUSE GHASTEK CAN'T SOLVE HIS OWN SCREW-UPS!" _Curran roared through the soundproof room. I almost lost my hearing. It was so _loud_.

"CURRAN!" It was Kate. The volume of their conversation settled down considerably.

"Now can I listen in?" I asked. Everyone nodded.

I sat down on my chair. Barabas eyed me for one long moment, then sighed and went to get a chair. Probably wanted to say something else. Jezebel grabbed the nearest chair and plopped herself in it. Ana and Drew settled down a little farther, on a cream-colored couch. I looked around the room one last time, and settled down into a comfortable position.

At first, all I got was white noise. Like when you turn on the radio during magic and all you get is this crackling, buzzing noise because you can't get a channel. Slowly, bits of conversation came through. but nothing made much sense. Then, I realized my ranger was too far, since I was hearing a bunch of cooks arguing over how to plate a dish, whatever that is, in the middle of nowhere. I shortened my range, hearing a cook in the kitchen scolding a new assistant in the process, and found my target.

"-find someone else!" Kate's voice hit me. I flinched at the audio volume, then tuned my sensitivity down. It's sort of like trying to make a person dumber. "Ghastek owes me! He can go find the Pinkertons or whatever!" The bald-headed idiot who's life is revolved around written facts? She must've pulled off a miracle to earn _the _second-strongest vampire navigator's personal favour. I may hate vampires and navigators even more, but it doesn't mean I'll let it cloud my perceptions of my enemies. Ever. "-on their own! They caused this...outbreak!" My stomach lurched. Good Lord. No. "I'm not going to be their mom and clean up their own mess!"

"The shapeshifters are in danger, Your Majesties." I sucked in a loud gasp of air. It was Raphael Medrano, my supposed uncle. His joking, relaxed manner was gone. Instead, a cold, icy man bent on revenge and destruction greeted me. He sounded familiar...like me. I see why we are related. Then, I understood his words.

Fuck.

"How?" I flinched at the sheer rage and fury in the Beast Lord's voice. Which he, in that moment, undoubtedly was. Calm down. He's not _here._

"They...recruited shifters, sir. Not within our borders, of course- we'd have found out much sooner. This isn't the first time they have done this, Your Majesty. Not by a long shot." A lion's growl started, and went on for a long time, reveberating across the room. The hairs on the back of my neck stood straight up, and for the first time in my life, I felt my fangs protract themselves. He called my animal. If we're in the same room, his veiled command would become a reality. I let out a wild hiss. I flinched at the foreign sound.

"Seleyda?" Ana whispered hesitatingly. I shook my head and concentrated on the conversation.

"-have they done?" Curran growled into my eardrums. I flinched.

"Mostly experiments, I think, sir," Andrea began haltingly. "The man let out very little. He only let out one thing, and it was just before the door closed behind us when we were leaving." I could feel her frown. "Something like LYPD. LYPI?" My blood ran cold. This was happening within this city's borders, and I knew _exactly _which combination it was.

"It's LVIP, honey," I heard the slap of soles hitting the floor. "We don't know what it stands for, unfortunately." I know what it does. In fact, I was a part of it. I opened my eyes, flinching at the sudden bright light. Stumbling upright, I went towards the vicinity of the door to the meeting room. I half-sang a couple of notes, and felt the slow return of my eyesight.

"Seleyda, what-" Ana started. I hissed. She immediately went quiet. "Drew?" She sounded small and frightened. I had no time.

BOOM. The doors swung open.

"Barabas! Jezebel!What is the meaning of this?" Curran shouted.

Blinking rapidly, I stared at Curran and Kate. Their shape was still a little blurry. "I know what it is."

They looked stunned. "What?" Kate managed.

"I know what LVIP is. Or rather what it means." Andrea and Raphael looked speechless with shock. Curran frowned.

"How did you hear us? Jim said-"

I cut him off. "What your head of security says has nothing to do with the lives of everyone within this fort." I immediately got everyone's attention. I could feel Barabas behind me, slightly to the left. Jezebel was warching me, trying to decide whether I was a threat or an information hub waiting to be plundered. Curran quickly settled down.

"Please, can you tell us more?" Kate asked.

"LVIP stands for Lycos-V Immortuus Pathogen Insemination. The word 'insemination' was officially dropped from the acronym when the average man kept mistaking it for making babies." Memories flooded back to me. "It's not." A warm hand slid itself into one of mine, small and soft. Ana. "Vampires take a long time to reach a notable level of strength and speed, since nature itself cannot stand its presence. " Kate nodded, understanding. "It's a pretty big setback for the People, in general, so they offset that by taking in large number of humans.

"Shapeshifters are the direct opposite, perhaps because we are creations of man and nature. At our youngest we sometimes have the fastest speed and strongest strengths, and it's becoming more common." I inclined my head at Raphael and Curran. One thing I knew for certain was that the alphas of the Atlanta Pack was not to be reckoned with.

Gold sparks danced in those grey eyes as understanding flared. With it came a rage beyond anything I'd ever seen, and only surpassed by my own.

He _cared_. Dear God, he cared.

"But our lifespan is comparatively shorter than the average vampire which, minus beheading, would _exist_ for a very long time." Kate's eyes were alight with understanding. "That's why the shapeshifters and vampires can never fully destroy the other at any given time. We are too well matched." A corner of the Beast Lord's smile lifted. I clamped down on the embarrassment rising within me. He'd fucking read me. "LVIP is helmed by the more..._radical-thinking_ members of the People." I could hear everyone snort. "Please, I'm trying to phrase it as delicately as possible. I'm as _biased_ a source as they come." They sobered up. In the corner of my eye, I noticed how pale Andrea looked. Did she know?

"Anyway. One man started this...thing. Have you ever heard of Jonathon Gilbert?" Kate and Curran flinched. So they have. I wouldn't have expected anything less. The man had, after all, tried to frame Nataraja for running a sex slave ring. "He wanted to create the...perfect vampire. The goal of his department is to genetically combine the pros of both species to create an amalgation that is better than its sire."

"Would that fail?" Raphael asked. "I mean, genetic manipulation requires tech. With the waves being so sporadic, wouldn't it be-"

"-Unfeasible?" I answered for him. "Yes, it was. The initial experiment had been a complete failure-except on one count. It was discovered that a certain...quantity of silver could _tame_ Lycos-V. The silver keeps it busy with regenerating more of itself, but does not completely kill it."

"That's not possible," Barabas scoffed. "_Nothing_ can tame Lycos-V."

I looked at him coldly. His face whitened beneath his tan. "I'll be very careful with throwing words like impossible and nothing around if I were you."

"Excuse me." I turned to face Andrea. I could feel the others' attention focus on her. She looked uncomfortable. Then why the hell would she choose to become female beta of Clan Bouda. Oh wait. She's in love with the male alpha of the exact same clan. Joy.

"Yes?"

She looked severely uncomfortable. "Well, the way you describe it, it's like you think it is capable of human intelligence. That it can be _occupied_ by something to the point where it won't realize what's going on."

"It _is _alive, Andrea," I explained. She flinched, as if not expecting me to know her name. Please. Like I could forget it when she could be my future aunt. "The point I'm trying to drive into your skulls is that both Lyc-V and Immortuus Pathogen viruses _are _alive. Nature does not accept vampires, because they are the aberration of the virus it created, but it did not try to kill it because it _cannot_. Could you kill your child, when he has a child out of taboo?" Andrea flinched. "What the LVIP created and is still creating is _the _aberration of nature. You of all people should know this."

"H-How?" Andrea exclaimed.

"You smell more animal than human. It's not very strong, which must be why you managed to hide it for so long. That and probably some sort of charm."

"How w-would y-"

"I tried once." I rubbed my neck. I didn't like talking about myself. "I...shifted too young. My body got messed up. I tried it, so I don't suddenly spout fur when I'm startled. As you can see, it didn't work." Well, it was as close to the truth as I can tell. No need to say the process hadn't been consensual. "Could you let me finish?" Andrea, startled, began to nodded. I quickly turned to face Curran and Kate.

Too quick, I suppose.

Hastily concealed looks of pity filled their face. I felt like screaming, but the small hand still in my hand reminded me that I had an audience. I cleared my throat, looking away for a few moments. When I looked back, a mask of serenity covered their true emotions.

"Officially, they screen volunteer shapeshifters and navigators, then make them sign the usual contract of confidentiality. The shifters only need to submit anything that contains Lyc-V and the navigators help pilot vampires through the process. Vampires are created or given in the name of charity, though it is stated that most may not survive." I heard quite a few snorts. A vampire cost thirty grand. Whoever donating had to be extremely stupid or rich.

"Unofficially?" Andrea asked, sounding as if she didn't want to hear what I wanted to say but steeling herself to do it anyway. My impression of her increased some.

"They kidnap young, hapless shapshifters on the cusp of puberty. Most of them take on smaller, considerably weaker or rarer forms, depending on what they...lack. The vampires are all forcibly created or stolen." I rubbed my arm, remembering the long, icy bite of pure silver. "They experimented on them to find the 'perfect' _purity_ of silver for the compound they were creating. Enough to tame Lyc-V but not kill both viruses. Immortuus Pathogen proved to be the more..._temperamental_ of the two." Hisses and growls filled the air. "It took them fifteen years to find it." The tension within the silence was palpable.

"They inserted the compound into a range of vampires. What they got was a new and extremely inventive way to take out a vampire," I continued bitterly. "Imagine squeezing a full blood bag very suddenly. Or shooting at it with a Sig Sauer P226."

"You like guns?" Andrea asked.

I was surprised, but didn't show it. "Yeah. I'm good with a sword and bow too."

"You're more than just _good_," Ana chided. I shook a finger at her. Not now. Surprisingly she stayed silent.

"See, the ratio itself is imperfect. It doesn't account for the chemical differences of each individual body. Some people are allergic to milk, nobody knows why. Some gain weight just by looking at chocolates. Others can gain and lose weight at the drop of a hat. These differences affect the ratio of silver to Lyc-V to Immortuus Pathogen. But the _scientists _didn't know that. It took awhile but they finally realized. Then some idiot broached the idea of trying the same compound on shapshifters.

"Apparently, according to Isaac Farrer, shapeshifters would have a higher percentile of success as their regenerative ability is ridiculously high, especially during puberty, and also one of the leading factors to why the chances of teenage shapeshifters going loup are disconcertedly higher. Most especially for boudas, because ours tend to run higher than ours. Other species can be higher, however." Curran nodded and gestured for me to continue.

Sam Buchanan's glee-filled face appeared in my mind's eye. I tried to swallow, but realized that my throat was drier than the Sahara Desert. "The first batch went loup within the first twenty-four hour period, according to reports. It was eliminated, except for one. I believe you know him as Sam Buchanan." I saw Kate and Curran share a look of knowledge and horror. "They found that the...compound was too potent for a shapshifter."

"H-How did you learn so much?" Andrea asked.

"LVIP has many...branches around the world, all very well hidden. One of them used to be in California, Death Valley. Sam and I share the same origins, in terms of where our...powers come from." A look of shock crossed their face. The smile on my face felt brittle. "When I was...escaping, I came across several files on the departments's...previous patients." Growls echoed around the room, amplified by the dome shape of it.

"How old were you?" Jezebel asked. Everyone jumped a little, all caught up in their little bubble.

"I was eight, going on nine. I think," I added hesitatingly. Raphael's look prompted me to explain further. "I was...sedated for a long time, so my sense of time was a little wonky. It was early spring when I first..." Died? Lost consciousness? Went out like a light? "...passed out, so to speak. The next time I...woke up, it was somewhere between late fall and early winter. "The look of shock and horror was mirrored on all of their unfamiliar faces. Only Ana and Drew knew, before them, and they stood with pale faces in a mask of calm. They'd told me that my...story caused this effect I was seeing on most 'normal' people.

"If there are so many of them, why hasn't the People...taken care of it?" Curran asked. "If it'd been me, I'll have ripped the heads off everyone involved."

"Contractually, LVIP is bound to the rest of what the People owns. However, they are an autonomous department, meaning even when other areas lack...resources, they have full rights to get their own without reporting to their superiors. Gilbert also gave them empty departments to cover their tracks, before his untimely death."

"So what are you saying?" Andrea demanded. "We're facing an outbreak of these...monsters?" Ana hissed behind me, hearing the subtle insult to my intelligence. I looked at her, showing her with my eyes that I understood the insult and to cool it. She nodded, but her anger didn't dissipate. Andrea flinched at the venom shooting out of Ana's eyes. It _was _a valid question.

"I'm trying to say that if you approach this the normal way, the clans of the Pack are going to call for blood. _Your _blood." I raised my hands, palms facing the Beast Lord and Consort, to pacify them. If I'd tried any harder, I'd been bowing, but that would've just lost my head. Literally. "I'm not implying, nor trying to, that you are incompetent fighters. I'm not," I insisted. Kate released her death grip on her sword, Slayer. Curran leaned back on his plush leather seat. "I'm simply stating facts. These aren't _normal_ breeds of shifters here. At least seventy percent of the surviving patients permanently teeter on the brink of loupism. Ten percent retains up to a third of their brain functions. Fifteen percent receives extra boosts in their already staggering physical attributes as well as near-human intelligence and form. Four percent looks and talks just like a bipedal human except they tend to not last vey long. One percent retains all the cons of the process with little or no side effects." Except that the silver goes supernova during tech waves. I felt my lips twist into a cold smile. "Sam Buchanan was, in the words of the scientists, a defective." I gestured towards myself. "I was their first viable prototype. The one percent they had strived towards. These..._people_ have had five years to improve their treatment, to create worse freaks pf nature, because Mother Nature doesn't condone this. Oh no. That's why heroes are called and legends are made."

"In your opinion, what would you suggest we do?" Curran carefully asked. I smirked slightly. _I_ have the advantage now.

I sobered up. This could be used to Ana's advantage.

**A/N: Wow. 4000+ words. Never managed that before. Here's to all Kate Daniels fans; sorry I'm so late. Too much goodies + too much rain = splitting headache + flu. I'd wrote extra for all of you. Hoping my side of the world gets Magic Rises soon. I absolutely loooovvveee the smell of new books to read. **

**Anyways, Love You All!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Ilona Andrews own the kate daniels series.**

_A/N: Here comes the Beat Lord..._

Un-beta'd

Chapter 5 - Preparation

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Seleyda stood before me, the golden twin of Angelique Maitland, the woman I thought I loved. I saw her in the waves of Seleyda's hair, the arch of her brows, the stubborn way her chin stuck out, and the stunning shape of her eyes. She was five six, and only fourteen. The same age as Julie. I could tell she would grow taller, become even more stunning. Perhaps even more than Angelique had been. A light lit her grey eyes. A touch of green tinted it; a memory from a mother she may never know again. I felt sorry for her, and at the same time, angry. At least I'd known my mother's love. Seleyda Medrano Farrer's live was already broken before she'd even known it was.

"I have a proposition to share with you," Seleyda said. Her voice was on a slightly lower register, soft with a husky undertone, and resonated with the regal elegance of her mother. In a few years, she'll learn how to use it as a weapon of mass destruction.

"And what's that?" I asked warily. I knew that look in her eyes; her mother had had the same look whenever she decided to make me do something I would prefer not to. And it didn't hurt me; the idea that Angelique had moved on all these years and had a baby. It was easier, in fact, because I was looking at something that held a part of the amazing woman that changed me. For the better, I hope.

"When I win this war with no casualities on the Pack's side, you allow Ana and Drew to enter your Pack and appoint me Friend of the Pack. This way I won't be too much of a thorn in your side and the messy process of background check can be skipped. From how I see it, it's a win-win situation." I considered with ramifications of this proposal.

True. I've always found the whole background checks and cross-checking process of admitting new shapeshifters a hassle. But it was a neccessary evil. Unfortunately, the longer it took was directly proportional to the number of meetings I'll have to sit through. Seleyda would be close enough to watch but not enough to drive me out of my skull with frustration, albeit in a slightly more unconventional way. In addition, with the recent battles we've been through our ranks have been thinned out quite severely. Any extra shapeshifters would dearly benefit the Pack. Plus Beatrice would get to have her grandniece nearby to spoil, provided that Seleyda allowed her to. Knowing Angelique, her daughter would be...unwilling to be given any special treatment.

But what were the conditions? And her confidence in killing all of these freaks of nature, as she'd so aptly put, with the use of 'when' and not 'if'. Like she was completely certain she was capable of taking all of them down. Where did this confidence come from? This girl, Seleyda Farrer, was hiding a lot of skulls in her closet.

"If I agree to this, what will you need for the fight? As you've so succintly pointed it out to us, you're just the prototype and they've had five years to improve on the _treatment_." The word burned like acid on my tongue. This wasn't a _treatment, _it was torture of the highest degree, but I digress. "There must be some plan you have cooked up in just-" I made a show of looking at my watch. "-a couple of seconds." She laughed, a rich loud sound that was filled with amusement, and reverberated within the room. I closed my eyes for a moment, enjoying the sound. Angelique's laughter was lighter, but just as beautiful.

"Curran!" Kate hissed. "We're supposed to be leading." I quickly opened my eyes. The smile on Seleyda's face was blinding, the equal if not better than her mother's.

"How very astute of you, Your Majesty," she drawles with a florid bow. "I'll need to veto your orders, sir. All of them. This needs to be executed perfectly or everyone in this fort of yours will cease to exist. First of all, may I tale a look out at a map of Atlanta?

* * *

"Re-introduce me as a specialist in warfare. Throw in a couple of hints that I'm from overseas war-torn countries and the like. Just make sure they don't write me off the second I enter the room as a wannabe badass. I'll be back in fifteen minutes," Seleyda instructed Kate, pulling off articles of clothing. "I left most of my hardware at the rental house. Time is of the essence."

"Wouldn't you be wasting your shifts?" Kate asked, curious.

Seleyda sighed. "I've already told you; the limitations of an average shapeshifter and vampire do not apply to these things. _Including_ me. One of the extra gifts of this treatment is that we can shift however many times as we wish, as long as our body can withstand it. We can even go without napping." Kate didn't look convinced. "My record was twenty-eight times within a twenty-four hour period." She looked stunned. "Please relay this to the Beast Lord. Make sure Ana and Drew do not leave the castle under any circumstances. Don't be too surprised if they choose to fight in warrior form then shift into human the moment you least expect it." Kate caught a flash of scar-riddled skin before meeting a pair of ruby eyes in a completely hyena face.

Kate blinked. The hyena-that-was-Seleyda vanished.

_Grey._ She thought. _Her beast form is slate grey. How the hell do you produce a slate grey hyena?_

* * *

The double doors opened just as Curran finished convincing everyone that fighting was their best option for survival. Seleyda walked into the room with the liquid grace that was trademark of most shapeshifters. She was dressed to kill, in head to toe black leather that conformed to her every curve, which shimmered under the feylanterns and hinted at some sort of extra trick to the armor. Her hair was hel away from her face with a military-style braid. A gasp came from Aunt B, who glared venomously at Curran. She'd known about Seleyda, since Curran had filled her in about her grandniece, but actually _seeing _her was a different thing.

"This is the war specialist we managed to hire. Seleyda Farrer. She's one of us, and will be fighting with us today," Curran explained as Seleyda got closer. She inclined her head, and turned to face the room full of shapeshifters ready to shift into claws, fangs and fur at any moment.

"Are you trying to work us up into a frenzy with your clothes or do you always work in that?" asked a male bouda. Alejandro. He leered at Seleyda. "Because it's working." Several others followed with laughter. Curran moved to punish the boy, but stopped.

The tips of Seleyda's mouth curved into the coldest smile the shapeshifters of Atlanta had ever seen. In fact, history was made that day, as decades from them, whenever someone said 'did a Seleyda' to the shapeshifter community, everyone within hearing distance shuddered in cold fear. Alejandro's face was wiped clean of his leer. His face had gone dead white beneath his tan.

"If you can still joke at a time like this," she said in a normal voice. It carried across the room," then you haven't fully understood the ramifications of this situation." Her left hand twitched ober the hilt of a sword by her hip. "The shapeshifter you are about to face will not hesitate to plunge their claws into your chest and rip your heart out, possibly shattering your ribcage in the process," she added as a side note. "They will bre stronger and faster than you, and you will be very well-acquainted with the stench of loupism by the end of it. The People cannot _afford_ to dispatch vampires, because they _know_ that they will be eaten and the shifters will only get stronger because of it."

"How can you know that?" Thomas Lonesco asked. "How can we trust you to tell us the truth? I don't mean to disrespect you, Your Majesty." Curran inclined his head, happy gold sparks dancing in his eyes. " I know that you trust this person to help us, but I can't help feeling uneasy at handing the lives of the two thousand shifters living in this castle to a child we barely even know before today."

Seleyda raised one blond eyebrow. "Touche." The shadow of a smile crossed Thomas' face. "Do you want kids, sir?"

Thomas blinked. "Yes." He shared a tender look with Robert. "We'd like to adopt a few in the near future." He frowned. "What's this all about?"

"What if I told you that most of the shapeshifters you're about to face are mostly minors?" Gasps sounded across the meeting room. Thomas' face went pale.

"Minors as in...," he trailed off.

"The youngest being six and the oldest seventeen." Sounds of outrage rapidly spreaded across the room. Seleyda spoke louder against the noise. "Imagine your youngest daughter, your niece, your sister, all in the throes of going loup and multiply it by ten. _That's_ one shapeshifter." Instant silence. Everyone could do the math. Multiplied by even five was a massacre. "My childhood best friend was one of them. She was fourteen. A very beautiful girl, with the most amazing smile in the world. She'd killed everyone in five consecutive families. I'd broke her neck and burned her body when I was ten." Seleyda's glassy eyes turned fierce. She surveyed the crowd. "Every single shapeshifter out there on the battlefield had been someone's sister, someone's daughter, niece and best friend. The People made them into monsters, and I'm here to ask you all to avenge all the missing shapshifter children around the world. I have just as much as stake as the rest of you." She stared at Ana and Drew, her eyes burning with an indescribable emotion.

Seleyda looked back at the Lonescos. "Does that answer your question?"

Robert gave her a long look. Curran tensed in his seat. "You are hyena."

"Yes."

"Hyenas don't forgive easily, do they?"

"Some don't ever." Robert chuckled.

"I like this girl. Yes. This answers our question. Please proceed." Seleyda bowed.

Her grey eyes scanned the crowd. "I can't tell you how these shapeshifters can get stronger by eating vampires. It's too complicated and you don't need to know." There was some grumbling. "All you need to know is none of them shall stand by the time the next tech wave comes. We will fight within this magic wave.

"We are the biggest congregation of shapeshifters within this country and perhaps the world. The Alaska Pack is too far away to send us any help on time. The rest will be too scared to even try. If the damned assholes on that iceberg can even look past their egos and inferiority complex to consider such an outlet." A lot of the shapeshifters started snickering. Mahon chortled under his breath. "This is _not _like fighting a _god,_ and it is _not _like fighting the _undead._ This will be a war against your own morals and beliefs. You will be fighting children, and they will be able to maneuver, hit and think faster. Not to mention being excessively reckless." That garnered a few laughs. "They are also what the human race views us, and why they fear us. Why there are anti-magic extremists who would slaughter us with great pleasure and the highest level of prejudice. We must stop this, or there will be hell to pay."

The silence was so vast a drop of water could fall and it would seem as loud as thunder.

"We are all products of nature. It was decreed by this land that we should come to be. What we are about to face is _not _by this land. Nature does not approve of its existence. That is why _we_, as her children, must end this. If the People, our allies, cannot help ua, we will find the fierce fires of our hearts and forge our own weapon from it. That is nature's gift to us. To never back down when faced with the enemy. To forge forth when we have nothing to lose, except everything that we have." Seleyda surveyed the room, a fierce light entering hers and every other shifter's eyes.

"Men and women in this room, will you join me on the battlefield? Willk you join me, even though the odds are completely against us? I vow that every human who stands by me, I will make sure they shall not die. For in this battle, it shall be our enemies that will fall. Will you listen to my words and let no doubt shadow your actions? Answer me!" Seleyda roared her last words.

The room exploded with shouts. "WE WILL!"

"Then let us proceed, for there is no time to spare."

Curran sat back on his seat, completely stunned.

**A/N: 2000+ words. Not bad. Half of the last one, but above average compared to the rest. Hope you guys enjoy! R&R please!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Ilona Andrews own the kate daniels series.**

_A/N: The war begins..._

Un-beta'd

Chapter 6 - Surprise-Not the good one

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All of the shapshifters the Pack could reasonably do without assembled themselves in the Mole Hole. Emotions ran high as they remembered the terrible fight against Erra. The lives lost, the lives ruined. Curran and Kate were at the frontline, doing a last minute scouting of the land. Wind whipped at their faces. Every inch of the expanse was carved into their mind's eye. Too many lives had been lost to allow them to forget anytime soon. Curran held Kate close, inhaling the sweet lavender scent that was hers alone.

"Feels like deja vu, doesn't it?" Kate asked.

"Hell's a better place than this," Curran agreed. He kissed her on the head. "Somehow the Gods decided that I should be given you." Kate looked up at him, a snide comment on the tip of her tongue. She saw the look on his face and blinked. A smile slowly brightened up her face. Kate kissed him lightly on the cheek.

"You ready?"

"As ready as I'll ever be." He tested the ground with a hand. "I don't trust her."

Kate's eyes widened. "Why-"

"I'm curious as to how she's going to go about securing us a complete victory. She's...confident. You saw for yourself in the interview. It's near impossible to have zero casualties in a battle, especially with the odds-"

"-stacked completely against us," Kate finished for him. She stared at Curran, worry clouding her dark eyes. "Curran, are you sure about this? Roland-" He silenced her with a long, thorough kiss that made her forget everything.

"-doesn't matter. I chose you out of my own free will and love everything about you. Even when you drive me out of my skull with frustration. If I didn't, there's no way in hell or heaven I was going to be paired with you." Kate scowled.

"Sure, sugarlips." Curran frowned, wondering where he'd gone wrong.

"Kate, I just want you to know I'd thought through everything. I didn't plunged into this blindly without knowing all the variables. I love you. I want to be with you. Forever. I'll still want you when I'm all old and wrinkly, and I still want you there to kick my ass." Kate's eyes softened. Something flashed through her gaze, but quickly vanished. Kate kissed Curran softly on the lips, luxuriating in the moment. Hot, wet and...

"Are you done?" They hastily broke apart. Cold grey eyes looked quietly at them; making no comments. Seleyda. Twin swords hung on her hips. The hilt of the daggers peeked out of the sleeve of her jacket. She turned her head for a moment, highlighting a small scar behind her left ear, and seemed to be listening for something. The scar looked like a bite mark. "The Pack's been assembled." She pressed the small bundle into Curran's hand. "Will you lead?" Curran was surprised. A smile quirked on the edges of her face. "You're the Beast Lord, after all. I'm just your humble servant."

Curran smirked. "After that rousing speech, I'd thought you were vying for the throne."

"Well I hope there were enough bathrooms nearby to fit all the couples." Seleyda winced. "Bad joke. Sorry." She looked away. "Thrones don't go well with me."

"Too much power?" Curran guessed.

"Too much variables." Seleyda smiled sadly. "...I have too strong a sense of morality. I couldn't bear to force my own will on others just because of a stupid crown on my head. I'm no god, and I have no wish to be burned at the-" She stopped. Her throat worked for a moment. Seleyda rubbed her forehead. "I just...don't want to become a tyrant. I don't want people to start hoping for me to become their guardian angel." She bit her lip. "I won't live forever."

Seleyda breathed unsteadily. "I wasn't sure which direction you were going for. I didn't think you'd actually help a teengaer who, before today, was a pain in the a-behind." The side of Curran's mouth tipped into a smile. "I needed everyone to listen to me, for the plan to work. The speech was the only way."

"Why didn't you use the word stake?" Kate asked. Seleyda flinched. "I just..." She looked at Curran. "I want to be sure."

"I was crucified when I was two. Left out in the wild for two weeks. I spent the time watching my mom die staked through her gut." Pain filled those cool grey eyes. "Now you understand?"

Curran took a step back, stunned with pain. "Angelique..."

"I wanted to save you the grief." Seleyda looked away, pursing her lips softly. Despite the shock, Curran zeroed in on her expression, trying to figure out where he'd seen it before, on another more familiar face. She looked at Kate suddenly. "Come with me." She looked back at Curran. "Don't...Don't miss." Curran blinked. Seleyda stared at him for a long moment. Something passed through them. She closed her eyes and quickle walked away. Seleyda stopped a few yards away. "You coming?"

Kate hurried over. "What is it?"

Seleyda put a finger to her lips. "No. Not yet." she half-sang, half-commanded in a single long note. Kate looked at Seleyda, hand touching her sword, Slayer. Then, Curran realized something.

_She's scared._

* * *

"What did you do?" Kate demanded, horrified and curious at the same time. Curran looked ready to kill Seleyda, his eyes turning molten gold.

"Spell of silence. Forms an invisible wall that rebounds every syllable you utter," Seleyda explained. She adjusted her daggers nervously.

"You're scared," Kate realized. "Why did you pull us into this scheme of yours?"

"And you aren't?" Seleyda countered. She let out a tightle restrained hiss, her gorgeous grey eyes flickering away. "Do you love him?"

Kate jerked back as if slapped. "What?"

"Do you love the man?" She jerked her head towards a murderous Curran.

"With my life," Kate answered honestly. "Why?"

"...there's a chance that he won't be there tomorrow in your castle on the cloud when you wake up and the sun shines through the window."

"How big?"

"Eighty-seven." Suddenly, Seleyda found herself a hair's breadth away from an irate Kate. Her sword, Slayer, seemed to have jumped into her hand and was glowing eeriely.

"Why the fuck did you pull us into this?" She hissed. "This had better be a joke or I swear nothing will stop me from cleaving you into two!" Kate ended it with a low growl.

"The size of the facilities the LVIP is given access to depends on the amount of fresh meat they can safely gain access to without risking exposure to the PAD or MSDU," Seleyda managed. "The bigger the source, the larger the places are. The Death Valley branch was the size of a football field and that was the smallest of all the branches around the world. It churned out a hundred shifters annually. Try to imagine what a branch located in a city the size of Atlanta would be able to create, with five years of dogged trials and a willingness to use any patient they can find."

One loup shifter was a killing spree. A hundred of them was a complete massacre. With the added boost of strength and speed, it would be the worst-case scenario in hell.

"I'd hoped beyond hope that their quality isn't good. I'd hoped their resources had been failures. I'd gambled on the chance that their success percentile was weak. I was wrong. I can't stop it at this point of time, even if I want to. The shapeshifters are all still running a buzz high from my speech and bloodlust for the coming battle." Her eyes projected what her lips already said and cannot deny. _I can't win this._

"What do we do?"

"I'm going to give you something. You don't ask me what it is and you don't argue with me on this." Seleyda gestured the situation around her neck. Kate released her, and nodded as way of saying she agreed. "I've coached Jezebel and Barabas on this." She passed Kate a necklace. An Elivish charm hung on it. Kate opened her mouth. "Nuh uh. You promised." Kate scowled. "Hit Curran with it. As long as this hits flesh, he'll go out like a light. The necklace also has a bomb feature that goes off in five seconds after impact. Throw it as hard as you can and run like hell when you hear Jezebel and Barabas' signal. Don't turn back, don't stop and don't wait. The moment the second signal sounds, everyone will stampede. You won't have time for anything else, I assure you." Kate limped slightly. "What's wrong with your leg?"

Kate grimaced. "It's my knee. Old injury. Acts up from time to time."

"Well, we can't have that." Seleyda bent down. Kate almost took a step back. Seleyda snagged her feet. "Hmm. Cartilage discrepancy. Broken several times too." Seleyda opened her mouth. A white fog escaped her mouth in a continuous stream, wrapping around the whole of Kate's knee. She gasped at the sudden burst of heat running through her leg, which melted into an intense coolness. "This will do."

"W-What did you do?" Kate stammered.

"I healed you." Seleyda got up. "Your medmage is really good." She smirked at something behind Kate. "I see my time's up."

"Wait!" Seleyda pursed her lips in annoyance.

"What?"

"Why are you helping us?"

"I don't want to leave something behind that's going to haunt me for the rest of my days because I didn't try to change it. I don't want to leave _them_-" she indicated the Taj Mahal in the distance. "-behind to creat more monsters. There are more than enough as it is outside. Never would be too short for the likes of the monstrosities we are about to face." Kate gave her a searching look.

"You killed all of them, didn't you? The one at Death Valley."

"Yes."

"Why?"

A cool smile tipped Seleyda's lips. "Because I fucking hate the undead." KAte frowned. Seleyda took the moment to dispel the charm on their surroundings. In an instant, Curran appeared and was doing a remarkable impression of a pointer at a pheasant.

"Are you okay?" He said carefully, drawing each syllable out.

"Y-Yeah," Kate answered distractedly. "I'm fine." Curran crushed her in a bear hug. A wererat in warrior form stopped in front of Seleyda.

" 'la' 'imb'e isssh reaaady, ma'aaam,' the wererat announced, his jaw making it nearly intelligible.

"Get the group ready," Seleyda said. A gust of wind blew at her. Strands of hair loosened themselves from her blond braid as they whipped across her face. Against the backdrop of endless land, she looked like Joan of Arc, readying for battle. The spell broke as she turned back to face the Beast Lord in all his golden fury with unflinching resolve.

"What were you talking about?" Curran asked, carefully drawing each word out.

A smirk caught the corner of her lips, and the faint impression of dimples peeked out. "Hi, Seleyda, how's your day assembling an army of homicidal maniacs that grow fangs and claws against another army of even crazier suicidal bordering on loupism shapeshifters that have had a lot of work done? By the way, could you tell me what the hell you were telling my precious mate, whom I treat like she's made of glass, that you had to do the magical equivalent of soundproofing me out of?"

"I don't need your smart mouth to make an appearance now, Farrer," he bit off. He squeezed his nose bridge in a mask of frustration. "Just tell me what you were telling Kate."

"Battle Strategies 101: Always Have A Backup Plan," Seleyda replied snippily. "Sorry, but members only." She smiled mockingly. "Mass chaos would make it _very_ hard for the shifters to listen to me, wouldn't it? Especially with all the coddling you give to your mate." Her grey eyes flashed with lightning quick intelligence. "In fact, you're probably more distracted on a daily basis by her and can't finish any Pack business without talking to her every hour."

Happy gold sparks danced in Curran's eyes. "How did you come to that conclusion?"

Seleyda rolled her eyes. "Please. I lived with the same thing for the last two years. Besides, you started a brawl in the middle of our plans over how far from the battle is considered safe. Then Kate just about suffered an instant apoplexy when you decided that she was to be your little Pack princess, locked up in a tower for her own safety. I haven't even _b__egun_ on Kate, with that episode when she realized you were going to be in front of all your followers to face a group of shifters that take trigger-happy-homicidal-maniacs to a whole new universe. _And_ the one where the both of you broke a scouting tent over who gets first kill." Her grey eyes stared at Kate. "If I didn't know you, I'll swear you're a shifter too." She looked back at Curran. "It's as bagd as they come in terms of mating frenzy. Drew once ripped a reissued Porsche apart because he thought Ana was spending too much time on it and became her transport vehicle to any place she wanted to go."

"That's crazy." Seleyda raised an eyebrow at Curran.

"That's rich coming from the man who nearly tore half of Atlanta to pieces looking for his future mate when it was _rumoured _that she was with his chief of security." Curran looked slightly stunned. "Yeah. That made plenty of splashes in the shapeshifter gossip grapevine. And the Beast Lord of the Atlanta Pack running rampant in the city over a woman is worth knowing."

Suddenly, she froze. In reaction, so did Curran and Kate, but neither could sense anything. Seleyda's eyes rolled into the backs of her head and back. They flashed ruby red. A bolt of gold darted across her right eye and vanished. Seleyda pulled out a small, sealed ball of cloth containing something.

Quick as lightning, she threw it into the air. A dagger cleaved it in two. A shimmery powder with gold undertones burst forth. The wind picked it up as Seleyda rapidly sang several notes, carrying the powder across the army. The shapeshifters didn't notice, except for Kate and Curran.

"Seleyda," Kate warned, unsheathing her sword Slayer.

"Clam down. It's an amplification spell. Your followers are good, but not _that _good. LEt's just say it's a...precaution." She gestured at them. "Go on. You may need it."

Kate shook her head. "It won't work on me."

Seleyda rolled her eyes. "Magic begets magic. It will work." She shrugged. "Besides, it doesn't need to fight your magic. Your skin is as good a target as any, but not as potent."

Curran stared at Seleyda. He took a step closer and gently pushed her dark hair behind her ears. She shifted slightly, a look of uncertainty and distrust on her face. He stopped, resting the tips of his fingers on her ears and face. Their eyes met. An electric spark ran through them. Seleyda's eyes widened. Gold sparks danced in Curran's grey eyes, acknowledging its presence.

"You look so much like your mother," he murmured.

"Really?" Seleyda asked, sounding almost child-like in her curiosity.

Curran nodded. "It's almost uncanny."

"My liege." Mahon stood behind Curran, a mountain of a man. "We are ready." A flash of gold caught Curran's eye. Seleyda stepped back. Curran frowned.

"Do you have your weapons?" Seleyda asked. Her eyes had suddenly gone ruby red.

"Do you have yours?" Kate shot back.

"Sure." Seleyda held up her left hand. A bulky, cloth-wrapped item was in her hand. Metal glinted silver in the late morning light. "I'll start the countdown."

**A/N: Whew. Finally. This was a hard one. Hope you all like it!**


	7. Chapter 7

**Ilona Andrews own the kate daniels series.**

_A/N: His Golden Majesty awaits..._

Un-beta'd

Chapter 7 - Battlecry

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Curran stood before his people, gripping the cloth-wrapped shard of sliver glinting menaciously in his hand. The shapeshifters in front of him murmured amongst themselves, uncertain and ready for the battle ahead. Dimly, in the distance, they could hear and smell their enemy shifters. Curran considered for the umpteenth time the insane plan Seleyda Medrano Farrer had planned in that tiny head of hers.

_"The problem with this fight is we don't have anything against them,__" Seleyda explained for the final time. _

_"How can that be?" Mahon argued. "We are the strongest Pack in the world!"_

_"Imagine having your body set on fire, and then starved for a year. That's one modified shapeshifter." She listed the qualities down on a stray piece of paper. "Six out of ten shifters don't make out alive, so we can expect anywhere between six hundred to eight hundred of these monsters." Her grey eyes pierced through the hulking giant. "Your liege has three thousand shifters at his disposal. Granted, it is a formidable number, but you're forgetting something." Seleyda smacked away the miniature soldiers with one violent sweep. "That's not counting the women, the children and the elderly. Once those are taken into account, you have around a thousand and sixty shifters. That's two _normal_ shifters to_ one_ modified shifter. As I've told you before, you need at least five renders to kill one of these bastards." Mahon flinched slightly at the curse. "Only ten percent of the Pack are renders, so we'll need at least double the numbers to kill one. That's ten to one for the average shifters." Seleyda folded her arms, a look of concentration on her face. "That's six thousand shifters. At least."_

_"What about the Beast Lord?" Thomas, the rat alpha, asked. "What are his odds?"_

_"Eighty. He can kill that many before giving in to his injuries."_

_Silence crept across the entire room. _

_"What do we do?" Aunt B asked. Seleyda flinched slightly, and a flinty look creased the female bouda alpha's eyes. _

_"We use this." Seleyda dropped a sack on the war table. _

_Mahon looked at it with undisguised curiousity and distrust. "What is in it?"_

_"The only thing that can even our odds."_

Curran stepped forth. His eyes glowed golden. "The Code of Thought believes the form of Man is our true state, and the Animal is to be controlled, because it is wild. That is true, but not today. Today, we are facing something far more than the Animal, and it is not the wild. We will be forced to kill children. Children," his voice rang, "forced into deranged forms we have never seen before. There cannot be any doubt when you strike them. You must kill, or you will die. We know how much children mean to everyone, but these aren't _children_. Not anymore. Steel your hearts, and let us face this army the same as we always have!" Shapeshifters stared at Curran with fierce, feral eyes. "To arms!" Curran raised his hand. As one, the Pack followed. Curran turned to face the incoming army. "Together!"

In unison, they stabbed themselves over their left shoulder. The shapeshifters' eyes erupt into the various colours of their animal's magic. Their bodies vibrated in near-violent spasms but remained human. In the far horizon, a line of darkness appeared. The werebears crouched in full armour as the line thickened, giving shape to limbs, heads and body. Noise vibrated from them, but it was too far, even for Seleyda, to hear.

"One!" Seleyda shouted.

"One!" They chorused. The horde of twisted shapeshifters reached the halfway line. The were-rats behind Clan Heavy had their eyes bugging out of their heads.

"Holy shit!" One of them exclaimed in a whisper.

Holy shit was an understatement. Seleyda's estimation might have been have a little too optimistic at two thousand. The horde that met them looked at least triple that number. Especially with those ghastly glowing eyes.

"Two!" Twelve miles.

"Two!" Some of the shapeshifters started praying from the sheer pressure of the situation.

"Please, God, wherever you are, if I live through this, I'll stop fucking every living thing I see," one bouda prayed.

"Shh!" His elders shushed him.

"Three!" Seleyda screamed, giving into the moment.

"Three!" Six miles.

"Four!" Three and a half.

"Four!"

"Five!" Seleyda shrieked.

"Now!" Curran roared.

The sound of clothes splitting filled the air. Growls, snarls, and hysterical laughter followed. In an instant, the shifters stood in their warrior form. Kate whipped her head about, stunned at the perfectly-timed metamorphosis. Clan Heavy went first, throwing themselves at the horde of manic shape shifters who haven't yet thought to shift. The collision was as jarring as a thunderclap. The rats went in next, quickly putting themselves to work on those feasting on the were bears. There was little thought or consideration left on the fact that these were children as bloodlust overwhelmed their system. A wolf howled suddenly, and the LVIP shifters changed forms. But theirs weren't..._right_. They didn't have the easy, loping gait the Pack adopted, the streamlined warrior form nor the ease of tactics change that came effortlessly to the well-trained adult shifters.

Many of the Pack shifters began to lose faith. Seeing this, Seleyda dashed forth and covered for them, unable to stop the flash of panic from appearing on her face. Only Raphael saw this, and leaped to her side. The boudas, seeing his determination, surged forwards where the others wouldn't. Raphael moved faster and faster, blurring into a maelstrom of steel, fur and claws. Suddenly, he took out a dozen manic shifters with an elaborate, piercing move. The look of surprise on Seleyda's face boosted Raphael's spirits, and he began to reach out for the limits of his speed, agility and imagination. He noticed the strange gait of the LVIP shifters.

"Use your speed!" He roared, fending off the hordes of shifters. "Give yourself room to move! Work in pairs!"

Realizing what he was doing, Seleyda began contributing. "See their uneven shift? It makes it difficult to work fast! Their minds are also all over the place, so make use of loud noises to distract. Remember three words; distract and conquer. Listen to Raphael! Find a partner!"

Slowly, the shifters started to listen. The faster ones worked alone. The slower ones worked in pairs. Other worked in groups, playing bait and hunter. Eventually, they realized the truth the two shifters spoke. They had speed, the shapeshifters realised, and brawn in excess. But their jerky, wild gait made it impossible for them to maneuver just as well as the average shapeshifter. They were easily distracted, as Seleyda pointed out, losing concentration in loud nosies; sudden barks, yips and explosions. The moment they all realised this, was the moment they realised they could win this.

Hope and belief ignited within them. In moments, the once-daunting enemies lay shredded on the floor in pieces. They shouted out the news and plowed through the army. Pushing their senses to the limit. For once in their history the boudas was doing something the rest of the Weres could not, and that pride burned within their hearts, urging them on as they pushed through the enemy line. But then, the buzz from the extra Lycos-V running through their veins died.

They were instantly overwhelmed.

Seleyda saw, from a distance away, the situation Clan Bouda had gotten themselves into. She had entered a form that was a meld of human and hyena; black fur sheathed her limbs while the rest remained human. Her eyes were ruby-red around the whole eyeball. A werebull stalked her from behind. He raised a massive hand. Silver flashed. His gruesomely mutated head hits the floor, and was smashed flat as a pancake by a foot. Seleyda unsheathed both swords and ran.

Alejandro, one of the hyenas, was held underneath a charcoal-grey wolf with half its fur ripped off and mangled leg. He snarled, trying to land a hit, but it firmly planted a foot on his arms. A woman in warrior form off to his right was fighting for her life against a massive werewolf. Her ruby eyes were filled with terror and raw hatred. "No!" She screamed.

A single claw ran lightly over Alejandro's face. He flinched. The monster smiled, revealing ghastly rows of shark-like teeth. "Pweetty. Too bae I can' ea you righ now."

Alejandro glared viciously at it. "I'm not afraid," he growled back.

The smile became a smirk. "Feisty."

"Mouse!" The dark-brown rat screamed. "NO!" With one ferocious strike, she downed the wolf. Crack. Its head was bent at a perversely wrong angle. She ran towards the wolf and managed to sink a knife into its thigh. It howled in pain and outrage. The wolf moved back, snarling, but it caught her by the throat. "Another feisty one. But this one's not good. No, it _isn't_." She choked from the grip of its hand, clawing through the flesh as best as she could, dangling in the air as she was. It snarled in pain. "Be nice I'll snap you neck in two like matchsticks if you don't." It proved its point by squeezing harder. Her eyes started to roll into the back of her skull.

"Myranda!" Alejandro screamed. "Let go of her!" He tried to kick it, but failed. "She's my fucking wife!"

It looked surprised. Then, the expression turned evil. "I get to kill a couple! This is going to be fun!" It leaned heavier on Alejandro's chest and slowly tightened its grip on Myranda's throat.

"Drop them." Myranda's eyes bulged even more out of her sockets. A hyena in warrior form stood before them, eyes glowing a vicious red. But the voice was entirely Seleyda. And she was sheathed entirely in slate grey fur. Black stripes danced across her torso. Smoky brown spots peppered her fur in a curiously elegant way. Twin blades hung by her side, loosely gripped by long, slender claws, perfectly proportionate to her body.

It looked happy. "More toys!"

The hyena-that-is-Seleyda sighed. "Yes, Byzantium. Let the rat go. She's a toy, right? Toy die, and there's no more fun, is there?" The thing, Byzantium, frowned, trying to think it through. Its grip loosened some around Myranda's neck.

"I think so," it commented. "Right, let's-" Byzantium let out a roar of pain, clutching the stump that was once his hand. Myranda fell to the ground with a thud. Byzantium then fell over, his left leg cleanly sliced off. Blood gushed from the gaping wound, painting the ground a scarlet red. Myranda sat there, stunned. Alejandro slowly got up, staring openmouthed at the slate grey hyena.

As soon as Seleyda slashed Byzantium, a hyena with bulging limbs attacked her from behind. She stabbed it in the gut, creating a new exit for waste. A weredingo tackled her as the hyena fell. She whipped her wrists in a rapid reverse cut, cleanly beheading the beast. She rose on one knee and pinned Alejandro with those piercing eyes. "Grab your mate and get somewhere secure. She's in shock! Now!"

Alejandro jumped at the command. He gently gathered his wife into his arms and took off. Seleyda followed and soon overtook them, clearing a road of corpses for them to pass through. The road narrowed, becoming a line and finally closes. Seleyda surveyed the scene before her as she attacked the manic shifters.

The Pack was holding their ground, Seleyda saw, but barely. Her spell was working; the regeneration and reflexes of the shape shifters were accumulating with every heartbeat. But the manic monsters were jut beginning to enter the bloodlust rage. Many were close to berserkers. The survival chances of all dwindled to single digits.

_Time for Plan B_, Seleyda thought.

Seleyda jammed one of her sword into the packed earth. She sheathed her other sword and knelt in front of the sword in the earth. She sang a few notes, erecting a shield around her of liquid. Seleyda took a deep breath, and screamed into the metal. It amplified the volume tenfold. The wall of liquid multiplied it a thousandfold. It was the equivalent of having a concert-made stereo blasting a hair's breadth away from your ears. It commanded the enemy to fall, and the allies to step.

Within moments, all the manic shifters dropped to the ground, whimpering and clutching their heads. Seleyda coughed, and tasted blood at the back of her throat. Dizzily, she stood. She felt a presence, of someone watching her. Seleyda squinted, and saw the faint form of Kate. She nodded.

Kate hit Curran with all her might as he turned to her, the charm in her hand. The charm connected with Curran's forehead. He stared in shock at Kate for one excruciating long moment. Curran's eyes rolled into the back of his head and he sinks to his knees. Kate caught him, then threw the charm into the sky as hard as she could.

BOOM.

An inferno of flame engulfed the sky. Many shifters, insane or not, screamed. A pair of horns sounded, hanging on one long, continuous note.

"RETREAT!" Kate screamed, as if to reiterate the point. "To the fort!"

In an instant, everyone acted. There was a monstrous, frenzied stampede as the Pack went on a mad dash back to their fort.

Seleyda sank on her knees once more.

She swirled her saliva around in her mouth, tasting the coppery tang of blood. Seleyda spat at her sword. She wiped her mouth cleanly, and began singing a jarring, frenzied but alluring tune that called to the downed enemies. A sky of stars lit up on the ground.

The song of the Wild Hunt.

**A/N: Thank you for patiently waiting. I'm sorry if this chapter isn't up to scratch; battle scenes aren't exactly my forte. R&R please.**


	8. Chapter 8

**Ilona Andrews own the kate daniels series.**

_A/N: Mystery whispery..._

Un-beta'd

Chapter 8 - Day One

* * *

I woke to the bright sunlight from the window by my bed, in my room at the Pack headquarters. Every muscle ached within my body, like I'd been out cold for too long. One question remained clear in the forced sleep I'd gone through; Why'd Kate attack me?

"Curran?" Kate's voice reached me. I rose and turned to meet her face. I was shocked by how pale and grey she looked, sitting on a wooden chair. Instantly, my fury died. God fucking no. No more fights. "You're awake. Dear God, I'd though you'd..." She broke off, her hair covering her face. Her shoulders shook. Overwhelming protectiveness ran through me. Fuck. She was crying. My Kate was crying, because she's scared she'd _lost me_. The mortality, and value, of my life hit me in that moment.

I pulled her into bed with me. For several minutes we remained like this; Kate making barely contained sobs into my shirt while I murmured softly into her ear. We broke apart. Her eyes looked bloodshot. Bags hung under her eyes. She sniffed.

Beautiful.

"How long was I out?" I asked.

"Fourteen hours." I was stunned into silence. "It's nine-fifty in the morning." She got up and went to speak to Derek by the door. "Derek's going to get you some chicken soup." A wry smile curled her lips. "It's like the flare again. We've switched roles instead."

"Kate," I started.

"Seleyda made me do it," Kate went on. "She told me-" Kate stared at me, and suddenly her eyes got misty. "S-She'd told me that you have ninety percent chance of dying on the battlefield." Her hands shook; something I'd never seen happen to Kate before. "And I did what she said."

Ten percent. Ten fucking percent of survival.

Kate saw the look on my face. "She didn't set us up. Her estimate had just been a little too optimistic. She'd hoped that the branch here wouldn't be up to standard, and this was on the possibility that she was wrong."

"She could be a very good actress," I said with little caution.

Kate raised an eyebrow. She folded her arms. "Against the both of us? Not likely." She sat back down. "Curran, please, can you honestly tell me that you couldn't sense she was the least bit scared when we were talking? Or even when she was talking to you?" Her eyes lit up. "She'd told you to not miss, remember? Before the fight."

"Yes," I agreed.

"But before that, she'd disliked-" She saw the look on my face and huffed. "Okay, fine, hated you. Didn't it seem weird that she cared for you?"

"Yes." I could see where it was going, but didn't want to stop.

"Wouldn't that mean, theoretically, she was scared _because _she cared for you?"

"Perhaps, but there's always a level of risk to any battle plan," I pointed out to her. "And with any sort of risk, there comes fear."

Kate smirked. "That's not an answer."

"Did we suffer any loss?" I tried to get up. Kate stopped me. "Is Seleyda here?"

Kate hesitated. "There was a mass stampede back to the fort. It took several hours to calm everyone down and more to count our people."

"But?" I could sense it coming.

"Twenty of ours are still unaccounted for." Kate looked straight into my eyes. Fear filled their dark depths. "Julie and Derek are some of them."

Fucking godammit.

* * *

I stared at the scene before her.

More than a dozen shapeshifters from the Pack's ranks had been ensnared by the song of the Wild Hunt I'd sang. Which led them to follow me, whether they were willing or not, into Unicorn Lane. One of which was Julie Olsen-Daniels, ward of the Beast Lord and pack princess. A few notable others were Derek Gaunt and Ascanio Ferrara.

"What are you doing here?" Julie demanded.

"Hunting shifters. The ones we were fighting yesterday," I replied. "You can't leave now."

"No shit, Sherlock," Julie commented.

I watched Julie with cold eyes. "That need of yours, to find me before, remember that?" The shifters nodded. "The same compulsion drives the mad shifters to find me as well. For the time being, the closer you are to me, the safer you are."

"You can cast spells?" Derek asked. I sighed.

"Yes, the compulsion was due to a spell. No, I won't break it. So shut your trap, princess, and keep your eyes open." A sardonic smile curled her lips as she shrugged. "Who knows, maybe you might even learn something before running back into Daddy's arms."

"Curran's not my parent!" Julie shot back. "Mine are dead. Kate adopted me." Oh.

"My mother died when I was two. I've never known my dad," I quietly said. Does that help?

Julie shrugged. "Whatever."

"Okay." I surveyed the lot of them. "Alright, I need names and I'll be putting you in groups." I sheathed her swords. 'If you have any suggestions, I'd be happy to hear it."

"Some of us are injured," a female voice came from behind me. I turned. A tanned female appraised me. Jennifer. I tasted the air with my tongue. Wolf, but with something...more. The musky, earthy undertone hit me. Pregnant, with a little girl. Four months, maybe? I was instantly angry.

"Why the hell is a pregnant alpha allowed on the battlefield?" I demanded. Gasps sounded in the clearing. Her face was pale. Not public knowledge, then.

"M-My l-l-lady - "one of the wolves began, horror and terror clearly on his face. She silenced him with a single look. Where the hell is her mate? The male wolf alpha? If it'd been Drew, I'll have killed him for such insolence. Gold edged her blue eyes.

"Allowed?" She said. "I'm the female wolf alpha. The battle has already ended, therefore any power you held prior returns to zero."

"Bravo," I applauded mockingly. "Tough luck, Barbie," I drawled. "It's not done. In fact, the war has just begun. And you're in. My. Way." I folded my arms. "And you think it smart to risk Clan Wolf's only ruler and heir apparent _at the same time _in some misguided attempt to take revenge for the death of your mate?" Turquoise touched my soul. "Would Daniel want you to do this?"

Jennifer took a step back, shocked. Her mouth opened and closed, but nothing came out. "I don't _care _how miserable your life is without him _or _how unfair it is that he's gone. I won't condone the misuse and mistreatment of life! Especially that of a child!" Cassandra's face flashed through my mind's eye. I turned to face the man who'd called Jennifer 'My lady'. "You!" He jumped, then cowered. "You'll be her guard. Take another four more. Your choice." Jennifer came out of her shock just then, looking insulted.

"I'm perfectly capable of taking care of myself," she insisted.

I arched an eyebrow. "Could've fooled me." There were several muted snickers. I growled. They quieted. "We are still in danger. Our enemies have just as or more keen sense as we do. Remember _that _lesson? I distinctly recall making it a point to drill it deep into the crevices of your skulls. Would you all like a refresher course?" Instant silence.

Derek stepped out. "I'll protect Julie."

The man jerked his head up from his convention with Jennifer. "No, Derek. I want _you _on _my _team."

I gestured with my head. "Go."

"But what about - "

"I'll guard her." Where the hell did _that _come from? "I'll guard the Pack princess." Why the hell did I announce _that_? Julie gave me the 'drop dead' glare. "When the Consort finds out you blatantly ignored and disobeyed her direct orders to remain in your room until such time as to when she deems it safe _and _joined in a battle you had no right to fight in, you're just as dead. Please note that I said _when,_ not _if. _You were very lucky to have survived, you know that?" She paled further beneath her Gothic makeup. "How old are you?" Someone should've banned that type of makeup from any fighters.

"Fourteen," she snapped.

I felt a little stunned. We're the same age. I tried to see it beneath the gooey layers of makeup. Nope. "I don't suppose you have any makeup removers in your pockets?" Julie looked stunned. "None, then."

"Why?" She asked.

"The weather." I scooped the soil up. Moist. "No matter how waterproof or smudge-proof a cosmetic claims to be, it will still smudge and get washed away in the best of all circumstances. When that happens, your vision will be hampered for a span of five to ten seconds. In any battle, that's potentially lethal. For the week to come, it's the deciding factor between life and death." I smelled the soil. Hmm. I'll need a little fertiliser to grow anything with this. "I'm trying to save your life, Julie." She set her jaw stubbornly, a fire dancing in her eyes. Street rat. Definitely a street rat.

"What do you think you are? My mom?" She folded her arms in a distinctly teenager-angst-ish way. Not that I'm...it's just how she did...Argh. Why bother.

Never mind.

"I'm just speaking from experience." She gave me a once-over. You wear makeup? I rolled my eyes.

"Yeah. Trust me, it's not worth it when you die." Someone snickered. Derek.

"Oh, did you die and come back?" She asked sarcastically.

"Yes, I did." I got up. "But that's a completely different issue."

"Oh, you'll do just fine," a black-haired boy drawled. Derek gave him a glare that epitomises the phrase, 'If looks could kill'. Ascanio Ferrara.

"Well, well, well, if it ain't the half-cocked arrogant peacock of Clan Bouda. You'll excuse me if I don't roll out the red carpet and fall to my knees begging for your attentions. There's precious few of that around here," I said. There were several snickers. The boy preened, as if I'd given him a compliment. Black hair, angelic eyes and a devilish smile. "I see why you're called the traffic jam generator." Derek bit back a laugh. "He has his...charm." Which I don't need. What I need is a pack of renders. Life rarely gives you lemons, if anything at all.

I appraised the lot of them. "Are there any renders?" A few hands raised themselves. "Form?" One hyena. Two wolves. No cats.

A hyena in warrior form stumbled into the clearing. Ruby eyes met mine with a light of recognition. "Se-LEE-Daaar?"

Oh my god. "Raphael?"

His form shuddered, melting into his human form. I tried not to gape at his...nudity. I could see why Andrea...liked him so much. Raphael sank down on one knee, gashes running across his chest. Crap. I ran towards my uncle, muttering a few choice words under my breath. Brilliant blue eyes blinked blearily. "Seleyda?" He gasped.

"What happened?" I asked. I half-sang a few notes, calling moisture to soak his throat and mouth. Raphael's throat worked for a few moments, swallowing the excess water.

"Thank you," he said. He sounded much better. "I was besieged by two of...them." Hisses ran through the clearing. "I managed to kill one and avoid the other." Surprising how fast the mob mentality invades the mind.

"How far?"

"Awhile," he gasped. "Ago."

"We're on high alert as of this moment," I announced. "We'll split into four groups. Julie," I called. She started. "Split them. Derek will help you. I need to heal Raphael; he's losing too much blood." The wounds weren't healing very fast. Raphael tried weakly to fight. "Don't. Just _don't_." The look on my face silenced his protests. I ran a finger through one of the gash. He moaned. I tasted the blood. Fuck. He has the silver in him. The same one that made me. "I'm sorry, but this is going to hurt a lot."

He managed to smile. "Be my guest."

I covered the gash with my mouth and sucked.

Raphael's scream echoed in the clearing.

**A/N: Enjoy you all. Thanks for favouriting and reviewing! Read and Review!**


	9. Chapter 9

**Ilona Andrews own the Kate Daniels series.**

_A/N: Seleyda's adventures continue..._

Un-beta'd

Chapter 9 - Night

* * *

The fireplace crackled as fresh wood was dropped into it. The day had been long as the shapeshifters learned new horrors of their former comrades. A makeshift spit had been erected, and hunks of meat were slowly roasted over the fire under the hungry eyes of the shapeshifters. They were tense and constantly on alert, eyes shifting over the shadowy clearing that had taken a life of their own. They knew, at any moment, from the depths of the shadows, one could strike, and any sand-even the slightest rustle of leaves-could mean live or death. They swarmed around the happy flames, their ears peeled as they received chunks of carved cooked meat with muttered thanks. Many were thankful for Seleyda Farrer's guidance.

Some, however, are not.

It didn't help that there was only one render amongst them. The other two had followed Seleyda into the mutated shapeshifter's lair. For a light raid, according to the twin wolves, Gerome and Eric. Arkansas, the bouda render, was in the clearing only because he was the youngest of the trio.

He prodded angrily at the fireplace with a long branch. "Why the hell was I left here?" He asked for the umpteenth time to no one in particular. "_I'm_ the strongest render of my generation! Even the Beast Lord has a problem taking me on!"

One of the guys near him muttered," Only because you're too dumb to pass for a genius." It garnered a few snickers. Arkansas' head whipped around.

"Who said that?" He demanded, eyes glowing.

No one replied. Arkansas stuck out his chin and stood up. "Well, if that's the case," he said loudly," then I'll just carve the answer out of you."

"Calm down, idiot," one of the older shifters said. "You _know_ what Ms. Farrer said about talking too loud."

Arkansas' nostrils flared. "I don't _care_ what the little slut thinks _I _have to do. She left me in charge here, and I'll do whatever the hell I please, thank you very much." One of the jackals fidgeted nervously.

"Oh shut up Arkansas," he hissed, nervously glancing about. His meat laid forgotten on a makeshift plate on his lap. A second later, another jackal snagged it. The movement went unnoticed. "We all know your _junk_is huge, since last summer's party. I don't care if you want to be slaughtered out here, but I have people at home waiting for me." Even if you don't, he implied. Arkansas's eyes went bright red.

"WHAT THE - " He roared. He didn't get to finish.

A sudden figure darted out of the shadows of the forest. It slammed into Arkansas, who was caught off-guard, and both fell to the ground. Immediately, Arkansas snapped into action, manoeuvring the deranged mutated shifter into a headlock. Its massive jaw chomped onto one of Arkansas' arm. He howled in pain, cursing the air blue. He grabbed its skull and tried to snap his neck. It punched Arkansas in the gut. Arkansas exhaled in a huge gust, gasping. The rest were backing away, their minds half-frozen in the sudden situation amongst them.

Oh shit, Arkansas thought in panic. I'm going to die. I'm going to fucking die here in the middle of the most fuckastically dangerous place in fucking Atlanta and it's all because of -

Gold-tinted metal flashed in the flame-brightened air. The monster's head, an amalgamation of man and animal, hit the floor with a low thud. Arkansas scampered backwards, gasping heavily at the pain in his arm. In the flickering light, Seleyda picked up the head, her form shrouded half in red-gold light and the other in thick, cloying darkness. She dug a hole in the ground. No one dared speak or breathe in the tensed silenced as she scraped soil with bare hands.

"It wasn't my fault," Arkansas said. "You left me here alone. What was I supposed to do?" Seleyda continued to dig. "Are you listening to me?" No answer. "Who the fuck do you think you are?" He reached out to pull her hair.

A second later, the same arm was cruelly twisted backwards. Arkansas flinched, not so much as from the pain as looking into Seleyda's eyes. Chained madness and violence stared back at him, teeth, claws and magic baring, and a chilling rage telling him that if she ever let herself even the slightest bit off the chain, he would not survive. She radiated pure malevolence the way Curran radiated terror, on some deep, primordial level, wielding terror of dark nights in ancient past like a steel blade. It was like staring into the face of death, and knowing without an inch of doubt that when the time comes, it will not be with mercy.

"The _little slut _who saved your ass." She dropped the head into the hole as she released him. Seleyda slid the bloodied sword through the skull. She jerked her wrist, and a loud crack sounded. One eyebrow raised itself. "A young turn. You're lucky." The eerie drawl of her voice resonated with quiet power and slithered over their bodies. Arkansas shuddered sickly. "Afraid of a little power?" How disappointing, she almost seemed to imply.

The young jackal moved closer. Awe shone in his eyes. "That's _awesome_. What are you doing?"

"Purifying." She looked at the jackal. "Get me one of the branches in the fire." He jumped up to help her.

"Here!" Seleyda glared at him. He flushed, chagrined. "Oops. Sorry." He lowered his voice significantly. Seleyda took the branch. The light hit the planes of her face beautifully, highlighting the high cheekbones and the pale orbs of her eyes. It made her seem almost...magical. She frowned, and the spell was broken. "The flame's not pure enough. It never is," she added softly. She grabbed the fire with her bare hands. People gasped. Someone screamed.

It didn't burn her hand. The flame licked the black leather gloves, but not one inch was singed. Seleyda pursed her lips and shook a finger at it. "Now, calm down." The flames flickered, hesitant. "Yes, _you_. I'm not going to hurt you." The flames stilled, as if listening to Seleyda. "You can join your family when I'm finished." The flames burned violently. Like it was arguing with Seleyda. "I know I don't own you. I'm just asking you to help me burn something." The flames quickly calmed down, dancing softly to a beat of its own.

"Magic!" Arkansas hissed. "Witchery."

The flames spiked, growing in intensity. Arkansas shrank back, eyes wide as he heard a tiny voice chattering angrily. He'd also swore that he saw something in the flames. Seleyda stared at him, her eyes an eerie red. "Mykolo isn't witchery. He's a nymph salamander. You can't see him because he's not strong enough to create his own form, which only happens in magic flares. No, he's just startled," she continued, addressing the flame. "He's not breathing because he's not used to meeting a nymph salamander." Arkansas let out a sudden gust of air. The young jackal moved closer.

"Tommas!" One of the older jackals hissed. "Come back here!" The young jackal, Tommas, ignored her.

"What's a nymph salamander?" Tommas asked.

"The progeny of a particularly powerful fire nymph and a young salamander," Seleyda explained.

"So the mother's more powerful than the father?"

The flicker of a smile curled Seleyda's lips. "I didn't say that. His mom just happens to be older than his dad. And stronger, for now." Seleyda looked at the flame. "Just relax and let me do the work." She closed her eyes and started singing.

"_Igne lux, ignis splendens, fac ut iste ignis, Dura et albus."_ The fire flickered, once, and started to vibrate. Near violently, the red, gold and warm orange clashed against each other within the flame. Seleyda whispered one word. "Fuoco." The fire shook. Its colours drained themselves in a startling frenzy as a high-pitched scream reverberated through the clearing. While the fire drained itself of colour, Seleyda held it against the edge of her sword.

"Brennen."

The changing flame adhered itself to the blade. Seleyda blew lightly and the flame flowed down the blade. The shifters stared as the flame slid silkily down the edge of the blade like liquid. At the last possible second, the fire flashed white, blinding everyone. The sharp smell of burning flesh hit them. People recoiled, gasping for breath.

"You wanted to know why I left you here," Seleyda began. Arkansas blinked. "I left you here because you are the strongest, as you've said so yourself. I thought you were worth two average renders. Sufficient to protect the pack for a few minutes. Enough time for me to finish it off. Instead, _you _managed to lead a stray here with all your stupidity."

Arkansas' mouth opened and closed. His throat worked, but no sound arose. "You left me here to die?" There were murmurs of displeasure and fear. What could the rest of them do, when even the prodigy render would have been easily slaughtered by one of _them_?

"If I'd wanted everyone here death and six feet under with none the wiser, you will be." She pulled up her sword. They backed away. "Funny thing about power; everyone wants to have it, but once you have it, you lose everything else." Seleyda cleaned her sword. No one could find something to say. "In fact, it would be a much easier and faster work if I'd never met any of you. I have to slow down a lot to compensate for all of you." A pair of wolves in warrior form ran into the clearing. Blood smeared their fur and muzzles. They shifted back and were quickly handed spare clothes to dress themselves in. They didn't seem to care - or didn't notice - the pale faces illuminated by the merrily crackling fire. They sat down and carved themselves some freshly cooked meat, then descended on them like a pack of wolves.

"How was the hunt?"

"Goo', ma'am," one of the wolves said. He cleared his throat. "We'd gotten our hands on some of them. Killed them after, of course," he hastily added. "The other pack was also chased off. 'cuse me." He gestured for his dark-haired partner to continue, and started on his meat again.

"We'd cut them up," the other boasted, grinning at the cheers he got. "Hung them intestines over the tree branches around their corpses. Dirty work, it was. But it worked, just like you said it would."

"Wait a minute!" Arkansas objected. They stopped eating. "W-Why are you still listening to h-her? She left me here to die!"

They rolled their eyes. "Duh. Because she already told us." The first wolf added, "Besides, you brought it onto yourself."

"See, we weren't at all happy at the idea that you got the easy job while we risked our lives out there. Babysitting," Wolf A clarified, gesturing at the watching shapeshifters.

"But Ms. Seleyda there told us that he - well, you - are supposed to have a harder job coz you're stronger than us. She put you here because you're the best chance they have to survive," Wolf B went on.

"B-But w-w-what about y-you?" Arkansas cried, still not convinced.

Wolf B looked thoughtfully at Arkansas. "I canna remember much, but she said something about singing?"

Wolf A smacked B on the back of his head. "It's sync, you brickhead."

"So it ain't singing?" B continued dubiously. "Coz me pipes are preety good." Wolf A smacked his forehead. Why me? He mouthed, beseeching the heavens.

"Gerome and Eric are twins, as you all can tell," Seleyda commented. "And they came from the same clan, which was an unexpected bonus. Blood and family binds them, making the best team I could find at such short notice." The flame, Mykolo, licked Seleyda's hand like a little puppy. Julie blinked.

"He's yellow," Julie whispered.

Seleyda straightened. Her nostrils glared. "Sensate. Why didn't you tell me?" Mykolo flickered rapidly, chattering away. Seleyda flicked him off. "Here. You and Tommas take care of him. Feed him." She tapped her temple. "Where was I? Oh, yes." She cleared her throat lightly.

"I'd already had a plan, as you all know. The first thing I needed in order to execute my new plans was a pair of shifters, preferably renders and possibly twins." She flickered a glance at the twins. "Apparently, I'd struck gold." Gerome and Eric grinned. "I needed them to follow my orders to the letter, no question asked. Soldiers who take orders well. Preferably with little ambition." She glanced at the wolves. "No offence."

"None taken," they chorused.

"Have fun, have fights and have food is our motto," Gerome boasted. He winked lascivious at Seleyda. To everyone's shock, she blushed. "Would you like to be entertained, Ms?"

She cleared her throat. "I didn't need some hotshot idiot who thinks he's all that." She levelled those imperious grey eyes at Arkansas. "Going off half-cocked is the last thing we need so close to the enemy HQ. The pair needed to be thoroughly in sync so when sudden obstacles appear, there's no need for words because both know exactly what the other wants to do. Twins are born with that kind of rapport, whether they want to or not. Veteran fighters who've fought together for decades have something similar. Gerome and Eric aren't even close to veteran fighters for another twenty years, but they have the best damn rapport of the lot of you." The twins in question bared their teeth in happy feral grins.

Arkansas' hands were shaking. His eyes refused to move away from Seleyda's, or rather they could not. Her eyes were sheathed in arrogance and ice, peering from a facce too young to bear them.

"Turn down those headlights, will you?" Derek quietly asked. "You wouldn't want him to go furry on you, right?" Coz he's damn near scared enough to do it, he seemed to imply.

Seleyda blinked. "I am sorry. I didn't know I was doing it." A half-smile caught her lips. "Habit, I guess."

In the firelight, her eyes suddenly flashed gold. Arkansas blinked. He opened his mouth, but thought better and closed it.

* * *

Someone was knocking on the door.

I mumbled something and went back to sleep. The guy cleared his throat uncomfortably. "I am afraid I can't, Consort. Your friend is most persistent on talking to you."

Friend? I don't have any friend, except Andrea. Andrea. Oh fuck. "Let her in."

I managed to claw my eyes open. Curran stirred a little, but went back to sleep. Whatever that Farrer girl had put in the charm must've been strong. I might have to ask her for the recipe. Provided she survived this. I stopped in mid-thought when I could clearly see Andrea. Any sleepiness I had in my system vanished.

Her hair was a complete mess. I remembered she'd braided it before battle - had it only been less than a day? - and now it was halfway between cute and fugly. I can't believe I just thought that. Her eyes were bloodshot and red-rimmed; she'd been crying. The only reason why Andrea even cries nowadays is because of one word; Raphael.

"What's wrong?" I asked. Fuck. Please don't.

Andrea looked at me with those mournful eyes. "Raphael and I got separated during battle. There was a mass retreat and all hell break loose. Everyone went back to their clan house after you dismissed them, so I went over to the bouda house to look for Raphael." She closed her eyes tightly, as if just thinking the word hurts her. "Aunt B said she hadn't seen him since he left with me." Oh crap. Raphael's Aunt B's only son and apple of her eye. She'd move heaven and earth to find her baby.

"What did she do?" I was almost afraid to ask. Andrea tried to smile.

"She's throwing me out of the clan for failure of protecting an alpha. It's even in the rulebook. You'll be geting a notice tomorrow morning."

Or prosecute the woman who might have killed her son. No way. No way in fucking hell.

**A/N: Here you go! R&R please. **

***Spoilers***

**There will be at least 7 chapters like this. You'll be seeing Seleyda in action with Julie, Derek and many more new characters. Enjoy!**


	10. Chapter 10

**Ilona Andrews own the Kate Daniels series.**

_A/N: Seleyda's adventures continue..._

Un-beta'd

Chapter 10 - Day Two

* * *

I woke to te familiar discomfort of a knife sheathed on my right wrist. Birds sang in the branches around me, welcoming the sun. I remembered reading somewhere that birds could see the sun rise an hour earlier than humans. An hour before dawn, then. I yawned as I got up. I jumped down to the ground. The birds peered down curiously at me. I waved and walked towards the only tent in the clearing.

Raphael was sleeping inside. Beads of sweat broke on his forehead. Sweat's good. It mean his body's fighting off the residual blood in the system. And winning. I sat by a shallow dent I'd made last night. The soil was damp. I drained it of its water, pouring it into a chipped dish Julie had found. A soft rag hung on the lip. I soaked it in the water and wring it dry, patting it on his forehead. His hair was raven black; I'd only noticed it now. I was too busy before - planning the battle, fighting, re-strategising - and then too tired to bother. I remembered his eyes were blue; a bright, brilliantly flashing colour that could take the breath away from anyone between sixteen and sixty. Strange how that didn't pass on. His eyelashes were unbelievably long; I'd inherited that. I didn't get the lips though, his were full and luscious. Nothing like mine. I flushed slightly. This isn't my dad, I told myself. It's my uncle. So what if we look a little alike?

"I can feel you staring," he whispered, eyes closed.

I rolled my eyes, but couldn't stop smiling. "Good morning, Raphael."

"It's 'Uncle' and you know it," he drawled. He cracked open one eye. "Morning, sunshine." I stared at him, stunned. Sunshine? " Anything for your poor old uncle to eat?"

"You're neither poor nor old," I retorted. It was ruined by the laughter in my voice. "I need to check your wounds first." I pulled out my trusty old knife and began sawing through the bandages. Raphael stared at me, slightly shocked.

"Looks like you'd got the Medrano tenacity as well, eh?" He muttered to himself. I pretended not to hear. Hearing what others don't mean for you to can scare people off, you know. I stopped. "How is it? Another day of rest, ma'am?" Raphael sounded light-hearted, almost cheery.

New, bright red skin glared angrily at me. "No, but you'll have to stay here till late afternoon. I'm leaving the renders here to protect the grounds." He struggled to rise. I gave him the look; you know the one. He stopped. "I used an extremely potent brew on you-"

"No wonder it tasted so bad, " Raphael quipped.

"-It heals wounds within an excessively short amount of time, but in return the host must rest for at least twenty-four hours before going on any activity that's considered strenuous. You'll die of heart failure within the first swing, and excessive bleeding by your last breath. Please don't ruin all the work I've done to save your ass."

Raphael grumbled, but settled back down. "You sound like the Pack healer, Doolittle."

I raised an eyebrow. "Obviously a very wise man." Not to mention that the compound I'd brewed contains magically altered arsenic. "I'll get you breakfast in a moment." I bent my head and focused on carefully pulling off the dirty bandages. He winced a few times, but didn't move. A surprisingly tolerant man, given the propensity for the females to spoil the male children in bouda society, or maybe it's a bouda thing. My impression of him got an extra few points higher. Any more and he'll hit the ceiling.

"I didn't see it before, but you look a hell of a lot like Angelique. Your father's colouring makes it harder, though, to see it. Were you blonde-haired as a child?" He suddenly asked. I jerked upright, accidentally ripping the last bit of bandage off. "Ouch!"

"Sorry," I said absently. The new skin held. "Why do you ask?"

He tried to shrug. "Argh. Just...trying to picture you as a child," he managed through gritted teeth. There was a tightness around his eyes. "Must've been a...cute little blond angel, huh?" I pulled out a small clay pot and slathered its contents on the thin skin. Raphael relaxed a little, letting out a sigh of relief. "Thanks." He smiled. I blinked a few times. Whoa.

"I wasn't blonde," I said quietly. "I was raven-haired, and my eyes were green." Raphael gaped at me in shock, looking at me from head to toe. What the hell happened? He seemed to ask. "I'd single-handedly massacred an entire town when I was younger. I don't remember much, but I woke up with blonde hair and grey eyes."

"They're not grey."

"What?"

He peered at me. "Your eyes. They aren't fully grey. There's a touch of green to it."

"You know my mother?" Raphael snorted. "Sorry. Stupid question. But, could you tell me about her?" He looked stunned. I flushed. A hard lump formed at the back of my throat. Damn it. "She'd died when I was two." And I've been slaughtering things ever since.

"Well, rem, she was very beautiful." I snorted, rolling my eyes. "No, really. In fact, it was one of the reasons why the Beast Lord took a fancy for her."

"What! Mom was married to Curran?" The God Destroyer?

"No! They were engaged!" I took a sigh of relief. Thank God. "His Furry Majesty still loves her, I think. He visits a grave he'd erected in her honour when the year-mark had passed, on her birthday." So he'd filed a missing persons report. "Speaking of birthdays, what's yours?"

"July twenty-eighth, twenty twenty-five." I gestured for him to continue. He eyed the chipped jar holding water. I poured a cup and slowly let him sip some.

"Thanks." He cleared his throat. "She was very stubborn. I remember watching her fight with Aunt Lexie. and Dan as a favourite hobby. She'd shifted young, about ten or so, but before that she showed lots of potential for human magic. Reading minds, levitating objects and such. Her powers got stronger when she was older." He suddenly laughed, remembering something. "I remember there was this one time Aunt Lexie had accidentally thrown away a favourite book series of hers. She'd gotten so angry she'd shattered every window in the house. "I laughed along with him.

I sobered almost immediately. That explains it. "What's wrong?"

"I, erm, seemed to have inherited that gift." He looked surprised. "Yeah, me too. Mine seems to be stronger, though. Can't control it all the time." Raphael had a look of horror on his face.

"You're not _trained_?" I shook my head. "Why the hell not?" Because I was raised in a town of crazies and loups. Yeah, that'll get him an instant apoplexy.

"My mother was busy trying to spell away the danger. I'd fell so many times into those damned things I'd become almost immune to them. They'd have to be either very strong or very old to keep me out." Raphael looked shell-shocked.

Oops.

"I was a, erm, fairly curious kid," I admitted. No response. "Raphael?" I waved a hand over his eyes. "Hellooo? Anybody home?"

"How the hell did you manage to survive till now?"

I shrugged. "I tried to be very careful." He barked out a laugh.

The tent flap shifted behind me. I tensed. A familiar sweet scent hit me. _Julie_. She sat down beside me. Raphael's eyes lit up when he saw her. Julie greeted him. I turned to look at her. Caramel streaked with gold hair pulled up into a ponytail. A flawless oval face with a sharp chin. Deep brown eyes fringed with long dark lashes.

She looked at me. "What?"

I felt the edges of my mouth twitch. "Nothing."

The elf-baby glared at me. "Go on, laugh." _See if I care._

"You look like your father," I commented instead. She blinked.

"What?"

"Curran, the Beast Lord. Your father."

"He's not my dad." Pain filled her eyes. "My father was a carpenter in the Carpenter's Guild." Huh. Must've missed that. My informant's been...lazy.

"I'm sorry." I tried to think of something else to say. "At least you had a chance to know him."

"And you didn't?" Julie asked. She leaned closer, curiosity getting the better of her. "Did he die?"

"I don't even know the answer to that," I replied wryly. "Momma was a very...private person. She'd told me she'll tell me everything on my eighteenth birthday." Didn't live long enough to cash in that promise.

Julie blinked. "You're not eighteen?"

"Nope." She squinted her eyes at me.

"Are you wearing makeup?" I laughed, shaking my head. "Well, you _look _older. Old enough to have kids." I winced. "What?"

"Eighteen's too young to have kids." If I even live to the age. I shook off the depressive thought.

"Now you sound like Kate."

"Which is a good thing. She knows what she's talking about." I straightened. Muted shouts sounded from beyond the tent. Neither Julie nor Raphael reacted. Crap. I'd erected a healing circle around the tent; including low levels of anti-magic afternotes. "Stay here with Raphael," I ordered.

"What-" Julie started. I didn't hear her question as I left the tent. The circle parted. The noise hit me like a wrecking ball.

Chaos ensued in the clearing. A mud brown baby hyena jumped about, biting, hissing and snarling at the shifters. Could it be? The wind suddenly came, pushing my scent towards the young shapeshifter. It bared its small fangs at me, ruby eyes flashing with human intelligence. One of the adult shapeshifter managed to cuff him. The young hyena was thrown back.

_Come and see! Come and see the newest addition! Marked by the Death God and born in the shadows! Ladies and gentlemen, the Silver...BEAST!_

_Mommie, it's so _ugly_!_

_It's a thing of monstrosity, Maddie._

_Look, it's growling at me! Do you think it understands what I'm saying, Da?_

_Pay five rubies and get a photograph with it! Ten for a five-minute ride!_

_Wwwahh!_

_Hush, child. Don't show fear to the animal. They can smell it, you know._

_Mommie, I'm scared._

I gritted my teeth. When will Ivanovsky finally leave me alone? I took a deep, steadying breath. "Enough!" I roared. The shouts and screams silenced. The young hyena tried to bite the shapeshifter's leg; the same one that'd cuffed him. I let the anger seep into my eyes. "Stop."

He froze. He whimpered.

"Down," I commanded.

The boy-hyena sat with a soft thump. He keened. I walked towards him. He tried to scamper away. My eyes kept him rooted to his place, and I could see his pupils dilate from fear. That's to be expected. I was just as frightened as him when I returned.

"What the - "

My sword jumped into my hand. Its razor-sharp edge was a scant inch from the stupid jackal's throat. His Adam's apple bobbed nervously. The boy-hyena whimpered, slightly confused. Not quite human, not quite Wild. Fucking godammit. I didn't look away from the boy-hyena as I spoke to the lot of them. "The hyena you've been attacking is a shapeshifter. He's very young, and got himself stuck in the Wild. I'm trying to get him back to his birth form." If he can even remember it. "If you value your lives, keep your fat mouths shut and eyes peeled open. No. Sudden. Moves."

I didn't bother waiting for a confirmation. They didn't deserve that much. The boy-hyena's pupils dilated further. I quickly sheathed my sword and scooted closer, releasing my grip on his mind. He whined but remained where he was, his ears pricked up with curiosity. Human intelligence flickered in those ruby eyes. Good. I pulled out a small bag of handmade sweets and poured a few out. From the corner of my eye, I saw Ascanio open his mouth to make another one of his patented snarky remarks. Trust me; you hear one, you hear them _all_.

Quick as lightning, Derek elbowed him in the gut and Julie stomped on his foot. A spasmed looked of surprise, hatred and anger twisted Ascanio's face. He fell backwards, and began moaning to himself in pain. Derek stomped on his stomach once. Ascanio quieted.

The hyena didn't notice. _Thank God. _He took a careful step forward, his nose furiously sniffing the air. Come out, come out, kitty. I stayed in my place, hand open with a few coloured sweets. He whined a little, ruby eyes flickering towards the shapeshifter morons surrounding us.

"They won't hurt us," I promised. I tried to exuded warmth and protection; not exactly my strongest assets. The boy-hyena peered at me curiously. My shape mad me human, but my scent made me Pack.

It confused him, just as it confused most shapeshifters. I looked too human. Smelled too Wild.

He trotted a few steps to me. His eyes were hungrily fixated on my sweets. A rush of pity hit me. Did I look that mad? Was I so feral? Had Pooki seen this, when he found me? The boy-hyena carefully sniffed me, again, slowly trusting. He looked thin. Too thin.

"Get some meat," I ordered in a low voice. "He's going to need food for the transformation." The jackal from before, the one I'd threatened, snapped into a crisp salute and went off like a rocket.

How strange.

A small wet nose prodded my hand. He whined. I shook my head. He whined again, the way hungry, neglected puppies did in abandoned alleys. The way I did, before I realized life was too busy watching the torture to care. "You know what to do."

He begged, whining pitifully. I steeled my heart against his puppy eyes. _"No."_

Sharp pain stabbed my arm. He'd bit me. I clamped down on my internal alarms, screaming at me to kill him. The boy-hyena chomped harder, shaking his head and aggravating the wound. It took all of my concentration not to snap, to give in to the wild side. Red eyes peered up at me. Curious. Still.

I raised my eyebrow sardonically. "You done?"

The boy released me. Blood gushed out of the wound. I let out a pained gust of air. My vision snapped into black for a moment. Crap. Not now. Warm wetness slathered itself over the open wound. It jarred my senses and gave me enough leeway to regain control of myself. I looked down. A fat pink tongue swirled over the fang bite, catching ever drop of the crimson liquid. What was more surprising was the fact that the tongue belonged to a dirty, mud-encrusted boy with black hair and eyes. His limbs were decorated with scars.

"What's your name?" I asked softly.

Big dark eyes aged by experience and the Wild looked up at me. Uncomprehending.

"Milo." A small dent appeared between his eyebrows. "Milo Ferrara."

I looked at a shell-shocked Ascanio. "Congratulations."


	11. Chapter 11

**Ilona Andrews own the Kate Daniels series.**

_A/N: Sister Bonding Time..._

Un-beta'd

Chapter 11 - Feral

* * *

Milo twitched in his sleep on my lap. The poor child, still dreaming of the Wild and being one with it. When he wakes, he'll feel trapped in human skin, with human senses and strength. _But he'll have someone_, the cold, familiar malicious voice whispered. _You had no one. Not even dear old Pooki understood you completely._

_ Shut up,_ I told it.

_Oooh, did I hit a raw nerve? _It laughed chillingly. _You need me, dearest Seleyda. I kept you sane at Death Valley. I gave you shelter in the woods. I sent you Pooki, at the moment you needed him the most. I kept you alive._

_ And sent me to my doom? I didn't live; I survived. You should know how dangerous Atlanta is to me. If you're even as all-seeing as you seem to profess._

_ Do not anger me, child!_ The words felt as if they were slapped at me. _I am one enemy you will _never_ defeat. I see everything, because everything will come into my warm embrace in time. This is part of your Fate, Seleyda. _A strange emotion colored its voice.

_ If you wish to pity me, go find someone else to harass. I have no need for pity from the likes of _you.

_ I'm not pitying you, child. There's more than enough of that in the world. No, I am here to warn you. Remember the witch's word. _That _is your Fate_. A spine-chilling cold ran down my back. Oh, I remember it, alright.

I remember every word. Every new moon, the words appeared on my back, courtesy of the witch's unique seering ability. _The Lion's child._ The phrase bothered me. I knew the witch was talking about me. I carried the Reaper's Mark, after all. But the phrase suggests that I'm the daughter of a werelion. That narrows down the list significantly. _Lion's Den_. The most well-known den belonging to a werelion was Curran Lennart's –

Oh. My. God.

Curran the Beast Lord. Blond hair; grey eyes; uncompromising, stubborn personality. The God Destroyer. The man that held three thousand shapeshifters followed. This August, he ripped apart Morrigan. In December, he made a dinner out of Erra, Roland's sister. I felt as if someone had slapped me. In fact, I wish someone had; hard enough that I'd blacked out.

"Speculum," I whispered.

A shimmery, mirror-like fluid grew in front of me. It spreaded in every direction, forming a thin disc. A strawberry blonde girl stared back at me. Her eyes were proud, arrogant and a pretty greyish-green hue. We had the same nose, albeit his was smashed up a little.

How could I have missed this? We are so alike it's almost funny, and I'd almost think it were a joke. But it's not.

The boy, Milo, stirred from his sleep. His eyes widened, and he flinched away from me. I kept still, letting the wind do its job. I filed away the thought for future musings. Slowly, Milo cocked his head to the side. He remembered. I rolled back the sleeve of my shirt. The bite mark had scarred, but that was only temporary. Milo's eyes widened in surprise. He tried to speak, but only managed a croak.

"It'll take awhile for your voice to return," I explained. "My name is Seleyda Farrer." _More like Medrano. Or Lennart._ I squashed that tiny voice. I combed his soft dark hair aside. There were light streaks of gold in his. "Your name is Milo Ferrara. Ascanio Ferrara is your older brother." There could be no doubt in his parentage. The eyes, the hair and shifter form.

"Ascanio?" Milo struggled to whisper. I blinked. He has talent. That and lots of determination. "Brother?"

"Yes," I said gently. "Brother. Ascanio. You'll meet him in the morning." He made a soft, whining sound of fear. I felt my heart lurch. He's scared of daylight. "Milo." The boy looked up at me. "I'll be here in the morning, okay?" He didn't look as if he trusted me. I gently took his hand and pressed it on my scar. "I promise." Milo ran a jerky finger over the rough patch of skin. Black eyes stared quietly at me.

"Mooornnninng," he growled. Milo snuggled close and shut his eyes. Within moments, he was asleep. His finger continued to trace the scar. I patted his dark head. An unwanted memory of a different head, with longer hair and big brown eyes, assailed me. _Shut up._

"For someone who wants us dead, that was a damn nice thing to do," Julie commented from behind me. I remained still. So kitty decided to come out and play. I'd known she was there, amongst the bushes. But she was quiet, much quieter than I'd expected a human cub to be. Picked up from the Beast Lord, perhaps? Or Kate Daniels? I felt a sudden surge of jealousy…and longing. What was it like, knowing that your parents will always be there behind your back, to protect you from harm? I quickly squashed the feeling. Sentimentality was a weakness.

"Let me guess, another hopeful shifter who wants to run things his way trying to bring me down," I snorted. "Historically, not awesome."

"How would you know anything about history?" Julie mocked.

"I know…enough," I finished. "What do you want, Julie?" She stilled beside me.

"You said Julie," she repeated. "That's the first time you called me anything other than Pack Princess."

"Well, Pack Princess was getting to be a mouthful," I admitted quietly. Milo stirred for a few moments, but drifted off again. I caught the blurred edge of his dream, something about cakes. Good. He was getting there. "I'm too tired to play games anyway." I wish I could sleep. But the wards around the damned shelter go out when I do, so I can't. Get to the point, child.

"Your aura," Julie started. I straightened. "It looks…funny. Everyone else looks bluish-green. You're…." Her eyes narrowed as she tried to describe the color of my aura. "…everything else." I flinched a little. "Right now, you're cobalt blue with greenish-yellow fire. But you're black as well. It's almost like _veins_, if it makes any sense. Some here –" she pointed at my right shoulder "- and here –" just under my left rib "- that looks like…balls. Or knots. They-" Julie blinked. "- They're purple. Like the undead. How the heck does that happen?" She rubbed her eyes continuously. My aura hurts her.

"I suggest you stop doing that."

"Do what?" She sounded extremely annoyed, and defiant.

"Reading my aura. It hurts, doesn't it? Stop watching it."

"I _can't_!" It exploded out of her. "You're not leaving me alone! Every time I try to shut it off, your stupid aura creeps at me and bang, it's back!" Julie took a deep breath she no doubt needed. "Look, your aura's confusing me. I'm not trained yet and the only thing I can really tell you from the looks of your aura is that you're a seriously messed-up person. It's based on my gut instinct." She thought for a moment, as if wondering if she should continue. I nodded, but gestured at the sleeping form of Milo. _Just keep the noise down_. Julie nodded, understanding.

"I think you went through stuff. Like operations," she struggled to explain. I had to stop myself from flinching. "No one alive could be born this messed up." I managed a smile. You'd be surprised, princess. "Seriously. You make Frankenstein look handsome in comparison." She pulled out the standardized water bottle I gave to everyone. Julie took a quick sip. "Back to the subject. I think they also added things into you, like those experiments on birds to see if people can be given hollow bones or something like that." She squinted at me. "Some of the stuff don't feel…_right._ It's like they're fake or something. You know, when the girl at the counter charges you for caffeinated Coke, and you get Coke zero?" I nodded. Looking for a sugar high, but getting vegan, bland food instead.

Julie nervously tapped on her knee. I could feel her fear and hesitation. I could probably guess what her next scenario was, telepath or not. "Go on. I doubt it's anything I haven't heard before."

"I think you're gonna die."

Yep, heard that before. But why did it hurt so much worst, having this slip of a girl spell it out to me?

Julie gulped. She raised her hands. "I mean, I think you're dying, like, right this second. I think any breath could be your last. The dark…knots, balls, whatever…it's like they're sucking the life out of you. But you're generating a lot of magic, and it's holding. For now. It doesn't look as if it's going to hold for long, though. I mean, they look big. Scary big. Crap, I'm scaring the living daylights out of you, aren't I? I'm so sorry, Seleyda. Seleyda? Oh, god, you're not going into shock, are you? You are, aren't you? Oh my god, where's a doctor when you need them!"

"How long?" I asked through unmoving lips.

"Seleyda?"

"How long?" I licked my dry lips. "How much longer do I have, by your estimate?" Julie stared at me in shock. "Julie! How much longer?"

"Six months?" She passed me her bottle. I took a large gulp. "Maybe less?" A small, fragile hand touched my shoulder. "Seleyda. I think you should see a doctor for what you have. They might be able to help. I mean, seriously, I'm not a certified sensate yet. I could be wrong." She sounded so hopeful. I hated that I had to burst her bubble.

"No, you're right." Her face went bone white. "Crap. I mean, you're right as in I'm dying. I've known that for awhile now. It's closer to eight, nine months than six." I smiled a little. "I just wanted someone else's opinion." Or maybe I just burned more of the candlestick off with all the magic I've been doing. Who knows? "You can tell Derek and Ascanio if you want. There's really nothing stopping you. I've already taught them how to get everyone out in case of emergency." Julie stared at me, shell-shocked. Surprised, Pack Princess?

Julie jumped upright and started towards where the two shifters had decided to patrol. Suddenly, she stopped. Her pale blond hair whipped in the wind as she turned to stare at me with those big brown eyes. I couldn't stop the flinch that went through me. The same brown eyes haunted more of my dreams than I could count. Julie turned, and sat back in the same spot she'd just exited. She stared at me.

"No," she said simply. "I don't think I will."

Silence hung between us.

"Does anyone know?" She asked. "The couple you live with? Ana and Andrew, right?" I looked at her in surprise. She rolled her eyes in typical angst-driven teenager fashion. "Curran and Kate talked a lot about the three of you, when they thought I was asleep." She sobered.

"Only Drew. Ana…I'm letting Drew tell her…after. It'll be better that way," I softly answered.

"'It'll be better that way? Do you really think that? For you? Or for them?" She demanded.

"Both." I sighed at the look on Julie's face, demanding more answers. "Ana's bound to me in more ways than the fact that I'd saved her from being tortured for the rest of her existence." Julie blinked. She started to open her mouth to ask. "Please, it's not exactly the sort of story to tell at bedtime." Julie scowled at the awful joke. I thought for a moment. How do I explain this? "Do you love Kate?"

"Yes."

Well, that was easy. "It's similar to what I have with Ana. I'd saved her from a lifetime of torture, and she saved me, in her own way. It's a lot deeper in many ways." Julie scowled at me. I laughed. "You'll understand about ten years down the road." I sighed. "How would you feel, if tomorrow Kate tells you she's going to die before the year ends, and there's nothing you can do to stop whatever it is killing her?"

"I'll feel angry," Julie immediately said, "and upset, because she didn't tell me earlier. Then I'll feel like crying, because there's nothing left for me to do except to watch her die."

"Here's where the depth of emotion separates us." Julie stared at me. "Ana and I are so bonded she doesn't go through any of that. In fact, if I were to tell her the truth, she could kill herself." She started to open her mouth. "When I came into her life, Ana was already in the lowest pits of hell. I'd been the only good thing that had happened to her in her existence until then, and for the longest amount of time, she confessed the only reason she remained in this world was because I told her to stay. One word from me, and she continued walking on this land for the last five years, until Drew arrived. Even then, she might not want to stay here, and I've seen exactly how much she loves Drew." I dragged a tired hand over my face. "You have no idea how many sleepless nights I've spent thinking how I should break the news without her suicide as the ending point. I can force her to continue living, but what's the point? I'd thought through every single possibility and this was the only one where Ana might survive."

Ana was my child, in more ways than I ever realized. To let her kill herself was akin to ripping out my own heart. I couldn't allow it. Not now, not tomorrow, not ever. Besides, I could never destroy Drew like this, no matter how much I'd hated him in the beginning for stealing my Ana.

"Could we just stop here?" Julie asked in a small voice. "Right here? I don't-" she gulped loudly. "- I don't think I want to hear anymore of this. I-I-Is that okay?"

"Of course." I surprised you could stand this long. I started to laugh, realizing something. "Can you believe this is the longest conversation I've had with a stranger?" And it's all about the soap opera between me, Ana and Drew.

"I think it's really brave of you," Julie murmured. "To be able to do this." Her chin wobbled. "I doubt I'd make it further than the week if it were me." Big brown eyes looked up at me. "How long have you known?'

"Since last year."

Julie snuggled closer, but then stilled. "Seleyda? Do you mind if I just put my head on your shoulder? I'm not going to try anything, okay?" She sounded so small. I didn't like it.

"Sure."

We sat in comfortable silence. Somehow, from the first day, I'd managed to make friends with the ward of the Atlanta Beast Lord, who might even be my half-sister. Somehow, we made it pass animosity and into grudging friendship. Or maybe more, if I'm in the mood to be hopeful.

"Seleyda?"

"Hmm?" I shook myself out of the clouds.

"I think Martina Ferrara is going to like you. Ascanio's mom." Julie yawned. "And I think you're the kindest person I've ever met." The sting of tears filled my eyes. Crap. I'm turning into a water tap. Julie yawned wider. "Seleyda?" She sounded sleepy.

"Yes?"

"Could you teach me how to fight?"

"If you want."

Julie had fallen asleep. The trees rustled behind me. I turned. A golden-eyed werewolf stared at me. A slow burn of lust heated my body.

Derek.

**A/N: Whew. This was a heavy chapter. Thanks Mom for doing minor revisions and allowing me to get away with some stylistic stuff I know still bugs you when it comes to my writing. Hope you enjoy the chapter and character development! R&R please. Thanks!**


	12. Chapter 12

**Ilona Andrews own the Kate Daniels series.**

_A/N: Or is it..._

Un-beta'd

Chapter 12: The End

* * *

Ascanio and Milo were seated together behind the boundary line drawn with magic. In fact, most of the shifters were seated around the field. It was late morning, after everyone had been fed. I decided to include at least half the group into the hunt. But before that, they needed to know exactly what they were up against. That, and I needed time to plan. Derek stared at me suspiciously, but I could feel the attraction between us. I didn't know why, or how.

Julie was completely covered with makeshift pads. She'd whined, at first, because the protection would make her slower. She wasn't whining now. Her footing was light – training from Kate? – but precise. No unnecessary movements. Julie lunged with a branch. I parried it, and smacked her over the head in the same move. Julie winced understandingly. If that had been a sword, or more likely claws and fangs, she'd be dead. The shifters tensed. I sighed. I dropped the branch. Julie started to drop hers. I stopped her.

"Seleyda?" She asked, confused.

"I'm going to get faster here," I explained. "I won't need the branch to hurt you." Hisses sounded in the clearing. "You need to see how dangerous it is to fight these monsters. Especially to our young." I almost dared them to argue. What better way to drive the point in, than to watch your own children fight for you? I crouched down. "Ready?" Julie nodded.

I ran. Ten seconds – I was in front of her. Three seconds. My hand was around her pale throat. Julie didn't notice. I gently held her chin and wrapped my right arm around her torso, restraining her. She suddenly gasped. Brown eyes stared up at me. "H-How d-did y-you-" she stuttered. Several shifters were shifting into half-crouch stances.

"That might've been a little fast, but it's the usual speed these shifters move at," I explained. "Most of you can see me, right?" There were many reluctant nods. "As you can see, humans can't, and you need to protect her." I released Julie. She ran away. A stab of pain ran through my chest. "Rule number one: keep your eyes peeled and ears wide open. Rule number two: It's healthy to be over-cautious. It's better to have false alarms than being dead in a ditch. False alarms can be practices; dead means dead." I got several approving nods. "Julie."

She flinched. I cleared the lump in the back of my throat.

"I'm not trying to intimidate you." I smiled a little. "I do more than enough of that." That got a few snickers. Her shoulders relaxed the tiniest bit. "I just need you, and also everyone present, to know one thing very well." I took a deep breath. "Do not, under any circumstance, engage an LVIP shifter alone. Julie, especially, must never fight one of them." I tried to phrase my words properly. "In fact, on the first day you arrived, I…wanted to send you back to Ms. Daniels, and I am astounded that no one tried their hardest to stop you from participating in the fight." Derek's lips twitched.

"They can't stop me," Julie insisted. "I am my own person."

"Even to keep you alive?" She swallowed. Are all teenagers as defiant as her? I thought about myself. Yep. To the point of being suicidal? Also, yes. I suppose it's the whole point of being a teenager. Be crazy; be wild and live for yourself. "Julie, you can keep jumping into fires to show you can take it. It's a way of life for many people, but one day you're going to jump in, and you're not going to come back right."

"Speak for yourself."

I ignored her snide comment. "You can either keep doing that, without the skill set you need, and die really fast. "And really young. "Or you can slow down, and live long." I stretched a little. I didn't need it, but they didn't know that. I'm a cat, for goodness sake. Or, at least, my dad's one. Has anyone heard of a cat needing to stretch before they pounce? "I can give you the hard and fast version. Ms. Daniels can teach you the details." _If you can even survive this_, was left unsaid. "I won't go easy, if you really want to know." Technically this was against orders. Fuck the orders.

Julie crouched down low. "I never asked for you to."

"Ready?"

"Bring it, bitch." I showed her my teeth. Nice big teeth, meet pale tender throat. Be nice. Julie showed me hers. "Niceness never won anyone a war."

Oh, she's _so_ gonna get it.

I rolled my shoulders as I made my way to the patrol site. Julie was busy getting spoiled by the shifters, after I'd bruised every single inch of her. Hey, she should be glad I didn't break any bones. Of course, I was left to lick my own wounds. I didn't have much. Julie wasn't a bad shot, but I did have superhuman healing abilities. Though I'd swear Derek forgot several times in the training. He damned near got himself fried, when he got too close to the shields. I snickered at the memory.

The feeling of something moving brushed my senses. I ducked. The werewolf sailed over where my torso used to be. Fast. Very fast. I planted a hand in the earth and did an uppercut with my left leg. It hit him in the mid-section. He fell. I jumped upright. He pulled my leg. I let out a sudden shout and went down. Golden eyes bore down on me. Damn, he was good.

But not good enough.

I kneed him in the gut. Air rushed out of him in a sudden, violent gust. He fell back, stunned momentarily. I knocked his knees sideways, blocked his spine and slapped the back of his hand. Derek. I rose. Golden eyes stared at me accusingly. I couldn't help the smirk on my face. "Not bad. You might even beat me. In another forty years." I gave him my hand. He stared at the offending appendage. "Aww, come on. Kitty." His nostrils flared. A massive paw touched my hand. "See, that wasn't so h-" My vision of the world suddenly got yanked downwards.

Derek swiped his feet over mine. I fell like a ton of bricks. I gasped, stunned but concussion-free. The large head of a werewolf looked down at me. Derek panted, a happy, wolfy grin on his face. I stared at him. He licked me, temple to chin. I gasped. A deep, throaty sound reverberated through him, thundering through me. He was laughing. _Derek was laughing at me_.

I swung my fist back to land a punch on him. Derek caught my arm at the wrist. I glared at him. The throaty sound came back. I shuddered as the sound resounded through my body to my bones. Derek stilled. Slowly, his wolf form melted away. I stared at those stunning eyes, on a face thickened from extreme torture it went through, and couldn't seem to find enough air. Neither, it seemed, did Derek. I panted unsteadily, like a bitch in heat. Crude, but true. Adrenaline thrummed through my veins.

"Seleyda," he whispered roughly. His eyes were bright gold. I felt my body- and soul – react. Oh. This was getting turned on. Derek's gaze burned through me, leaving me a puddle of need. I licked my dry lips. His eyes did a remarkable rendition of a pointer sighting pheasant. Or a dog in a storeroom of big, fat juicy bones.

I managed to breathe, although shakily. "Y-Yes?"

Derek closed his eyes, as if the effort of talking pained him. For one long, crystal-clear moment, I realized he was completely, and utterly, as naked as the day he was born. I felt my color rise. Derek groaned, and bent down, capturing my lips.

Oh my god. The world just exploded around me.

I gasped, winding my fingers through his longish, dark hair. Derek gripped my head tightly in his head, pulling at my hair. I didn't care, and pressed myself closer to his blazing, inviting heat. His erection pressed up against me. I moaned, arching my head back. Derek pulled my face back down. He kissed me with all the savagery of a beast and a man, bruising my mouth. I made a soft sound. He groaned in the back of his throat, and forced my mouth open. I moaned, clamping my weak legs around his hips. He grounded himself against me. I whimpered. Our tongues clashed, heat and passion clawing between us. I sucked and stroked and moaned at the divine taste of him. I wanted more. So much _more._

Derek's hands started getting a little naughty. He caressed my body, lingering in places that I didn't even know existed, making me shudder and arch. The heat was unbearable. I shifted uncomfortably, moaning wordlessly and trying to get him to understand. His eyes turned molten, and he gripped the corners of my shirt. With one swift move, he ripped the thing into shreds. I didn't think it was possible, but his gaze got hotter and lustier at the sight of my bare breasts. My nipples hardened into tiny buds. Derek moaned. "You'll be the death of me, Seleyda Farrer." I moaned, grinding myself against him. Derek gritted his teeth. Slowly, with excruciating tenderness, he bent down and pulled one nipple into his mouth. He sucked.

I almost screamed. The pleasure was so intense. I bit into the side of my wrist, but couldn't stop the moans coming out of me. Derek laved over the tiny pearl. I jerked. Suddenly, he stopped. _Wait! _I screamed. _Don't stop!_ He gently pulled my wrist away from my mouth and kissed me. Our tongues lashed out at each other with all the savagery of two beasts about to mate. The taste of my blood between us only made it hotter. Derek's rough finger teased the nipple he'd been suckling. My eyes rolled to the back of my head. I panted hotly. His dominating mouth covered mine, and I was sent on another space trip. "Please," I moaned against his mouth. "Please please please!" I screamed as his finger stroked me through the jeans. I gasped. "Please."

His hands made short work of the rest of my clothes. Electric and flames zinged through us as we made head-to-toe, skin-to-skin contact. I cried out. Derek covered my mouth. I bucked, his scent driving me wild. He kissed me, and held me down as he kissed his way to my legs. I couldn't seem to get enough air into my lungs, but it wasn't a scary feeling. Well, not much. It was…exhilarating. And, frankly, hot as hell.

The man stopped for a moment. He pulled close and kissed me again. Sparks of white-hot passion burned between us. Derek held it back and strained, dragging out the kiss. Long, sweet and very, very hot. I managed to breathe again. He smirked at the look on my face. Derek ducked back down. Tenderly, he kissed the patch of hair at the apex of my legs. I tried to breathe steadily.

I lost it at the first touch of his tongue. I gasped as I climaxed, flying over the cliff into nothingness. Derek held me as I shuddered and bucked, and silenced my mouth when I screamed. When I came back, he started it again. I huffed, and arched my back with each wave of pleasure. I tried not to scream, until Derek shifted me close and thrust into me. I jerked and bit him on the shoulder, drawing blood. Derek stilled. A tender hand stroked through my hair. "Seleyda?" My name was just a rough gasp in his chest. I managed to let go of his shoulder. I licked it a few times. Derek shuddered. "_Seleyda."_

I kissed him. Pushing his lips open a little, I slipped in a bit of my tongue. Derek groaned and sucked. I flicked my tongue over his. His body vibrated violently beneath me. Derek thrusted. I moaned, breaking off the kiss. He pulled me close, so that I was not only impaled by his erection, but also straddling his thighs. I slipped down a little. My eyes rolled into the back of my head. Oh. This was – Derek thrusted again. I whimpered. So good.

"Ride me," he breathed. I managed to nod. I rose a little, and sat back down. Up. Down. Again. Derek buried his face in my breasts, lavishing them with his attention. He bit down hard on one nipple, then gently blew on it. I arched my back, crying out. The sensation fried my senses. I rode him hurriedly, impatient for the end. Derek stopped me and left me waiting as he ate my breasts. I panted, and gasped when he bit the soft side of my throat. "That's for the shoulder." I shuddered. Derek pulled me tight, and started pounding deep into me. I kissed him furiously, not about to let him have his own way.

We exploded in the same moment. Derek roared. I screamed out completion. We fell back onto the ground, naked, mussed-up and completely satisfied. He cuddled against me. I stilled for a moment, but relaxed against the hard planes of his body. I'd always thought I didn't have a single soft place on my body besides my breasts, but lying against an actual man…I finally did.

"Seleyda," Derek murmured. "What was that?"

"I didn't expect you to hold me like this," I answered truthfully. "I'd seen most guys simply roll over and fall asleep immediately."

"Do you know a lot of guys?" He asked in a quiet voice. Minefield: Tread With Caution.

"Well, I've only seen Drew do it," I explained. "The others…were acquaintances." Suddenly, Derek turned me around. There was a fierceness to his golden eyes that took my breath away and touched my soul. I couldn't seem to breathe properly.

"Did they rape you?" His voice was harsh and promised a million ways of torture. "The guys you…_met_." Derek spat out the word like it was an expletive. I nodded. His arms wrapped around me tightly. Derek hissed. The smell of his rage soaked through my senses. I stared at him in shock. He just got angrier. I stroked his back, confused. Derek caressed my darkened hair, and kissed me softly on the side of my throat. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have done this."

I looked up into his suddenly brown eyes. "Why?" I snuggled close. "I don't mind. Besides," I added, smirking at him," at least I lost my first time to someone of my own free will." Derek stared at me. I kissed him. "I decided a long time ago that my first time shouldn't be defined by a simple thing as a hymen. I will choose the guy I want to give my first time to." I couldn't help the blush coloring my face. "If it helps, you're the first person to give me an orgasm." Derek's eyes widened.

"Really?"

"Well, you're also the first person to give me my second orgasm." He nipped my ear at my teasing. I gasped a little. Derek's lips tipped into a smirk. He leaned down and nibbled on the tip of my ear. I moaned softly, writhing against him. "Maybe," I gasped. "Even my third?"

"Your wish is my command, my fair lady."

I laughed. "You and I both know I'm neither fair nor a lady."

Derek kissed me softly on the forehead. Mmm. "But you _are _beautiful, and you are a woman." I groaned as he sucked the soft side of my throat. Oh, wow. I didn't realize I could be sensitive _there_. "And that's what the people of the past meant when they say 'my fair lady." He kissed me long and deep. There was even tongue involved. We pulled apart. "Would you like a refresher course?"

"It'll," I gasped, "be my pleasure."

If this ends badly, I am _so_ screwed.

We walked slowly back to our patrol area. Derek's hands were warm as he clasped my hand. He seemed completely out of it - staring in wonder at our entwined hands, nostrils flaring at our mingled scent and nuzzling me often. I was shocked by how much I loved it. The idea that I could be _attached_ to someone as deeply as I already did scared the crap out of me. I had Ana. I didn't need anyone else.

Or did I?

Suddenly, a warm arm wrapped around my arm. Derek pulled me close. I gasped a little at the full-body-contact. He chuckled. The warmth in his eyes almost sent me to my knees. I didn't close my eyes against it. I clung tighter to him instead. Derek understood. I didn't know how, or why, but he did. His arms wrapped around me tight, and I breathed in his musky, male scent. I didn't cry, but I couldn't breathe properly. The wall of heat around me vibrated. I caressed his muscled back repeatedly.

Derek shuddered, and the vibrations stopped. He loosened his grip on me. I stood on tiptoes and kissed him full on the lips. His grip tightened as he clasped my shoulders. We broke apart. Brown eyes stared quietly down at me. I smiled. Derek hugged me again. I hugged him back, pressing myself as close to him as possible. I fit perfectly against him as Derek tucked me under his chin. It felt right.

He breathed in deeply. Derek exhaled in a slow gust. "I keep thinking," he admitted," that you're going to run from me any second. Or you're just another daydream that decided to make itself real."

I looked up at him. "Why would you think that?" I didn't mind the 'daydream that decided to make itself real part', though. "I'll admit you weren't much to look at when we first met, but that was because I was in the middle of assembling strategies for a massive hit-and-run battle. Besides," I added with a smirk," I've yet to run off screaming bloody murder, have I?" His face didn't change.

"You don't understa-"

"No, _you_ don't understand," I cut him off. "I _don't care_ how you think you look. What I care for is the man I saw protecting Julie as she fought, even though she should've never been there. The man who took care of the whining elders when I wasn't around and kept the cats, wolves, rats, jackals and boudas from ripping throats out. I've never been turned off by disfigured people. In fact, they are much better people to l-talk to than most people." I gripped his arms and pulled them off me. Only our hands came into contact. "But, when you cannot find it in yourself to stay by me, I'll let you go. I won't ever blame you for it."

Derek's nostrils flared. His eyes turned molten gold. "First of all, what the hell is wrong with you?" He gripped my forearms and started to violently shake me. "Do you not trust me enough to stay by you? You used 'when', not _'if_', to state that I will leave you eventually." Derek shook me even harder. I couldn't believe my ears. "_I will never leave you_. Not now, not tomorrow, not _ever_. I don't know what this is between us. Magic, voodoo or whatever it is, I am glad we met." I stared at me. He looked angry and frustrated. "There are some wolves who don't give marriage as much respect as the rest of us. I don't."

"Marriage," I whispered through unmoving lips. I stared at him. "You do know that I'm only fourteen, right?" Technically, I was. With the experiments done on me, I'm physically closer to sixteen. "I-"

"Seleyda." Derek stopped shaking me. "What must I do to make you understand that I won't leave you?"

"You will." I didn't meet his eyes. "Everyone does in the end."

His eyes turned pure gold. Derek mashed his mouth with mine. I accepted it. Opened up to it, even. His tongue dominated mine, burning to the bone. I couldn't breathe properly as he lashed his fury out at me; I was used to it. People used me like that all the time. Derek's hand gripped my head tightly, his nails digging into my scalp. I swallowed the pain. _Take the pain, you bitch. You're nothing but a worthless bastard._

This I can deal with.

Derek pulled my sweater up. His hands roughly grabbed my breasts and pinched them painfully. I didn't scream. I didn't cry. It didn't do any good to do either in this situation. The only thing I could do was ride it through to the end. I pulled his head up and kissed him softly. At least I had this.

Suddenly, Derek released me. I fell onto the soft earth. The homicidal rage in his eyes made me flinch. He stared at me. The rage dimmed. Derek turned and walked away. My hands reached out on their own accord. I pulled them back, and wrapped them around my body. See? They always leave.

I was on my feet and chasing after Derek before I knew what I was doing. He was halfway back to the camp. I could feel the anger oozing out from him and driving the monsters away. Derek was going to drag Ascanio from Milo's side and have him take over the patrol. He didn't care anymore.

The miles evaporated between us. I grabbed him from behind. Derek shifted into warrior form, and managed to throw me off him in my shock. His claws ran through my side before I realized what was happening. White-hot pain shot through me. The shock and horror on his wolfish face would've been comical in any other situation than this. I gripped my side as blood gushed out. The fluid was black. Jet black.

Derek stared at his claws, dripping black blood. The wolfish traits melted from his body, leaving him as naked as the day he was born. I watched him calmly as a tiny corner of my mind told me the wound wasn't clotting. Blood was flowing out of me at an accelerated speed. At this rate, I would bleed to death within minutes, if not seconds. I coughed. The taste of blood tinged the saliva. Shredded lung, perhaps? Not much, of course - my ribs deflected most of the damage.

I couldn't believe how calm I was about my impending death. Or how painless the process was. I died before; or at least, I stayed long enough to realize I was dead. I didn't remember it being _this _painless, or without fear. Derek dashed to my side, a look of utter panic on his face. I tried to smile.

Death by magically enhanced hemophilia. How ironic.

"YOU'RE NOT GOING TO DIE!" Derek shouted at me. I looked at him. What was the point? The blood wasn't going to clot. Derek's background started to blur around him. Only he was clear. I squinted, trying to see better. His eyes widened. I tried to locate my hands. I wanted to hold Derek's hands.

Unnaturally warm hands gripped mine. I tried to look down. The effort of doing it made me even more tired. I stopped. My body felt heavy; that was familiar. I'll get lighter when I close my eyes. At the thought, my eyelids started to feel heavy. I was so tired. My eyes started to droop. What about Derek? Ana? Julie?

Who? I asked.

Warm lips touched mine tenderly. I struggled against them. One of the hands lightly held my head still. I tried to open my eyes. Brown hair fell into my field of vision. _Derek_. I closed my eyes and tried to open my mouth wider. I managed. A warm, silkily rough tongue pushed its way in. I weakly ran mine over it. I moaned. Derek nibbled on my lower lip. Aah.

Pain shocked my numbed senses. I tasted my blood. Derek bit me. Slowly, the scent of his blood came to me. I realized what he was doing.

He wanted to die with me.

I struggled. Derek, still strong, held me down. "Maybe this will prove it," he murmured softly.

Prove what, I wanted to scream. I remembered our conversation. _What must I do to make you understand that I won't leave you?_ Oh my god.

"No," I protested weakly. "W-What a-a-about Julie?"

"She has Ascanio and the others," Derek replied. He stared at me with a tender look. "I love you."

No. This isn't how things should've ended. This shouldn't be it. Not for him. Not for my Derek. _HELP!_

_Yes, Seleyda?_ The voice sounded smug. _I knew you couldn't resist calling me after seeing your dear little werewolf kill himself to follow you._

_ You did this?!_ I screamed. _How dare-_

_ Now, now, Seleyda, _it chided snidely._ Are you sure you want to waste your time on a lecture? Your pet dog may not make it. _The voice laughed chillingly. _Tick tock tick tock, mutt. Make your choice._

_ Save him. Save him and I'll take the lives you wanted me to. Five lives. You can't-_

_ Yes, yes, yes. I can't take anyone who'll endanger you or I'll lose my vessel. _The voice sighed._ Very well. You get your wish._

"Seleyda?" Derek said weakly. His face was ashy beneath his tan. The beat of his heart was chillingly unsteady. I could feel his lung work to bring enough air to his body. He wiped my face. It came away sparkling. Tears. I was crying.

"Goodbye," I whispered.

Derek gasped. I felt his heartbeat steady. A slow flush of health warmed his face. His features blurred away. I gasped as my heart thrummed desperately in my chest. "Seleyda?" His voice sounded like it went through a well of mud.

The end, I thought.

**A/N: Sorry it took so long, guys. I'd hit a nag to the storyline and had to fix the thing. Thanks for waiting! As usual, R&R please!**


	13. Chapter 13

**Ilona Andrews own the Kate Daniels series.**

_A/N: There and back again_

Un-beta'd

Chapter 13: The Return

* * *

I drowned in the sea of memories. At least, I thought it was memories. There was only darkness, everywhere I looked, as I sank deeper. My chest burned, and I fought to keep my mouth closed. To keep from swallowing the waters. For some reason, I was terribly afraid of it. I couldn't muster the energy to remember why.

The inside of my body scorched with the need to breathe. But I didn't dare. There was no light, no way to know how deep I've sunk. My shifter eyes did nothing to make a difference in that. Despite that, I wasn't afraid. What I feared more was the moment when my body stopped listening, and took the first lungful of water.

But who was I? Where was I? What is this…body I'm in?

My mouth opened to ask, "Who?"

The waters gushed in. I choked. Too much, too much, my brain alerted me. I gagged and struggled, clasping my throat. My body worked to swallow the water. More spurted in. It went into my stomach, my lungs and, eventually, my nose. I coughed, but it only brought more water. I clawed at my surroundings, but there was no purchase. A silent chill crept up my spine. My heart thundered desperately within the confines of my chest. There wasn't enough air. I couldn't breathe.

I couldn't _breathe_.

Nothing. There was nothing for my eyes to see. On paper, there should be nothing that scared me. But it doesn't explain the chill in my bones, the stampede in my chest, or the terror in my soul. It did nothing to solve the fears in my body. I tried to scream, even as my conscience told me to keep my mouth shut. For the first time, it had a life-threatening reason.

An arm snaked underneath me and pulled me up. I burst out of the waters and felt the air slide over my bare skin. My lungs started to work on their own, drawing in a fresh supply of oxygen. The shot of water still in my throat spurted out as I gasped and jerked in someone's arms. A pair of arms clamped around me, stopping my struggles. I tried to open my eyes and catch a glimpse of the person. Black spots danced in my vision. The sunlight flickering at the edge of my eyes burned. I moaned and let my head drop back. My mind spun from the pain and vertigo.

Death had never hurt this much.

The hand dropped away. The arm beneath me deposited me on some sort of plank. My hearing shorted in and out. I gasped as I took my first, unimpeded lungful of air. Dry, dusty and packed with magic. I sucked it all in, and felt the burn beneath my skin. As the magic worked its way through me. I breathed deeply, coughing. My lungs hurt. My chest hurt. I breathed deeply again. This time, I heard sounds. Indistinct, painful but definitely sounds.

I struggled to remember the words, the cadences and phonetic forms of the English word. While a language and funny letters swirled in my mind's eye, evoking many of my dreams as a child. And nightmares. The pain alone should've been a deterrent, but I listened on, trying to pick out the different pronunciation, the individual pitch and dip of a sole voice. A small hand touched my hair. I stilled. The wind blew over. Sunshine and magic. Julie?

Warm and light, she touched my cheek. "Seleyda?"

I took a deep breath. My lips cracked. Ouch. I tasted blood. I couldn't talk. My throat and mouth wouldn't be able to handle it. I opened my eyes. There were black spots, but I could see the worry. A dimpled smile of a baby I'd lost washed over her face. I blinked. Those freckles came back. Her nose came back. Julie came back.

It hurt more than I could ever say to smile back. Knowing, just knowing I'd thought she was my baby. Julie stared at me in shock, and ran out the tent. The tent Raphael was sleeping in. I only learned later that she'd mistaken me for her mother. I heard her talking to someone, but wherever that burst of energy had come from earlier to even attempt to sort out the voices, it had left me. I sank back into the depths of darkness.

When I woke next, night had covered its cloak upon the world. I blinked as the thought came to me. Night had a cloak? A soft, throaty voice murmured words at the back of my mind. Mom? I stilled under the rough blanket.

_'Night had covered its cloak upon the world, and the people of Atlanta wept and prayed to the gods to deliver them from the mad bear king Andorf. But the gods would not listen, and all hope was lost.'_

_''No, Mama. All hope not lost. Men can. Men will!''_

_Laughter shook the tiny bed. "Yes, LeeLee. Men will rise and save themselves. Thunder shook the earth and the winds brought a thousand storms. When the man came, the people realized he was not a man. He was not an animal. He was _both_._

_Tiny hands made claps that it had only known. Baby giggles danced along with the creaky boards beneath. "Papa! Papa Lion!"_

_A soft kiss touched her wispy dark hair. "Yes, sweetheart. Papa Lion. _Your _Papa Lion." The light clearing of her throat. "And so the bear king Andorf was slayed. The people rejoiced –"_

_"What's regoinced?" A child asked._

_Laughter. "They danced, LeeLee. They danced and sang and fed their new ruler…"_

_As if on cue, the little girl went, "Papa Lion! Papa Lion!" The little girl cleared her throat. "And ta Papa Lion had a little baby girl named LeeLee Medrano Maitland Lennart. A magical little girl. But…"You could feel the frown on the little girl's face. _

_"But the little girl was too magical. She had to be kept away from Papa Lion, because Papa Lion is too young, and so is little LeeLee." The little girl squealed as her mother tickled her. "One day. One day, when Papa Lion and LeeLee are old enough, they will meet and they will be a family again."_

_"But Mama…What about you?"_

_She laughed sadly. "There won't be this Mama. Another Mama is waiting for you. She can't have babies, you see. _You'll_ be her baby." A tender kiss pressed to a baby's cheek. "Sleep, my baby Seleyda."_

_"Night, Mama." The tiny black head turned away from the door, curling up in worn but soft sheets._

_ My dearest LeeLee,_

_I can only give you what I have, and show you what can be. Choose and be strong about it. There will be much light and shadows, but know that you are loved, from the moment you are in my womb till the moment you breathe your last. Know that your Mama loves you. Know that I will never regret my choice to leave and have you take my place in the balance of Life. When we meet again, we shall laugh till the end of time in the Isles of the Blessed. I will wait there and learn again everything that I have missed. I love you."_

The warm, comforting voice faded from my mind. My mother's voice – that is my mother's voice. She _knew_. She knew that I'm Curran's child. She knew she was going to die, and I was going to be alone. She knew, and didn't tell me a _thing._

_Well, well, well, your mom's a bitch and your dad's insane. You must've hit the record low for any family history. Not to mention your stepmom. She is a _work_ of art on her own._

_SHUT UP! SHUT THE FUCKING UP OR I WILL PERSONALLY GO BACK DOWN THERE AND BREAK YOUR NECK!_

_You wouldn't dare._

_I dare. You _know _I dare. So leave me alone!_

A scorching kiss pressed itself against my mouth. I managed an uneven breath before it was taken from me. My eyes fluttered close. The rough rasp of his tongue against mine drowned my senses in the purest form of passion. I lost track of what I was thinking as he swept me away in a maelstrom of desire. My hand grasped the thick dark locks I'd memorized by sight and feeling. I tasted the musky male scent that was so familiar…but different. He kissed me tenderly on my temple. I inhaled. Sandalwood. He smelled of sandalwood. Derek.

"Derek?" I asked, panting. It came out as a whisper.

"Ssh," Derek soothed throatily. I writhed against him. The lines on his face deepened. "Are. You. Okay?" His words were careful; measured. I stared at him, my mind a complete blank. I did the only thing I could do.

I reached for him. Derek started to move away, but stilled. I caressed the warm, rough face I'd somehow gotten to love. He kept still. So still I thought he wasn't even alive, if not for enhanced shifter hearing. I reached up my other hand and explored the hard and soft planes of Derek Gaunt's face. Eventually, he relaxed into my touch, and opened those brown eyes to me. I stared up at them. Have I ever told him how utterly beautiful his eyes were?

The memory of a smirk touched his full lips. "Now you have."

I blushed. "I said it out loud."

Laughter vibrated through his body. "Yes, you did." Derek kissed my cheek. "Don't do this to me again, alright?"

I played with his hair. "I'll try." He pulled me close despite the blanket between us. Derek kissed my dark hair. I snuggled close. Fatigue settled in my bones. I barely managed to stop a yawn. "How was your day?"

His body vibrated with silent laughter. "You just spent thirteen hours in bed after I'd sliced you open and the first thing you ask is _how was your day?_"

"I'll admit, that wasn't the smoothest change of subject, but give me some credit," I protested. I fake-punched him in the shoulder. The strength drained out of me. My fist barely touched his shoulder before falling like dead weight to the floor. Derek looked down at me worriedly. "Thirteen hours? Doesn't that just seem like bad luck to be this close to me?" Derek looked mockingly horrified. I giggled.

"Is it?" He asked. "Seleyda?" He started to tickle me. I squealed in shock. Suddenly, I started coughing. I couldn't seem to stop. "Seleyda? Seleyda!" Derek quickly got off me. The quick thumps on my back did nothing to soothe my burning throat. In fact, it only made me cough harder.

"Derek, what the hell happen-" Raphael suddenly stopped talking. I heard the frightening shredding of clothes. Derek went flying. Out the tent, I might add, but then Raphael roughly pulled me close to him and shot upright. He ran to the end of the tent and set me down on the table. A new addition to the tent.

Raphael shakily poured something out into a cup. He cupped my neck and started to pour the mixture into my mouth. The familiar, atrocious taste of homemade herbal remedies slid comfortably down my throat. A touch of magic sparked my own, and the effects became even more apparent. I breathed deeply, and the tiny black dots faded away. "Breathe, niece. Breathe."

"W-What d-did you g-give me?" I managed.

"A tincture. Dali made it for you. She's a were-tiger. Dali…she claimed she saw a mark over you, a mark that no one could run away from. Not for long, she said. That was the last one I'm supposed to give you." Brilliant blue eyes stared worriedly at me. "Are you alright?" I nodded shakily. "Did Derek-" His eyes turned ruby red. "Did _he_ rape you?"

I stared at hm. "What m-made you think so?"

"The people heard noises. I heard Derek shout, and ran in here. I thought-" he closed his eyes as if in pain. "I thought something had happened, that I didn't follow Dali's words to the letter, that I'd forgotten to do the steps right, that I'd remember the things wrong. I never felt as scared as I did the moment I realized you were in danger." He pressed his forehead against mine. "Please, please, please don't do this ever again, alright, Seleyda?"

"I-I can't," I whispered. Raphael glared at me. "We can't know what the future has in store for us." His lips were set in a mulish line. "We can only live in the moment." I smiled up at him. Raphael blinked. He opened his mouth. His throat worked.

Long lashes danced up and down. " Seleyda, don't get this wrong, but for a moment there, just a moment, you looked exactly like your mother."

My breath caught in my throat. "Really?" He nodded. "Did you know I had a dream about her? Well, not exactly a dream. It's more like a…memory." He lets go of me. Derek silently slipped him. He froze, and then slowly sat down on the sheets. Raphael gestured me to continue, oblivious. I told them both. A look of shock crossed their faces when I told them my full name.

"Lennart?" They chorused.

"You're Curran's child?" Raphael questioned in disbelief.

"You're His Majesty's…" Derek swallowed. He looked green. Raphael shot a look of shock that slowly turned to suspicion.

"Ssh!" I hissed. "No one else needs to know this. Not. Even. Julie. Especially her. We can't afford the tantrum and distrust this news will no doubt bring. As it is, we don't have time!" I chewed on my fingernails. Raphael pulled my hand aside. I glared at him.

"No biting," he insisted. " Etiquette."

"Oh, fuck you, Uncle. We don't have time for etiquette class!" He seemed hurt, but I didn't have time to care. "It's the fourth day already, right?"

"Early morning, but yes. Whoa, Seleyda! What are you doing?" I'd gotten up. Derek instead had ducked his head between his knees and was rocking himself back and forth. Oh, yeah, he's been messing around with Curran Lennart's daughter. The highest authority and legend in Atlantean shapeshifter circles.

"Getting back to work. Are the seeds planted?" Raphael nodded and gestured at my body. I looked down. I was buck-assed naked. "Where are my clothes?"

"They were disposed of. We…we had to cut it off you to get to the wound." Raphael's face tightened at the memory. I could smell the terror coming off him. "You'll need to wait if you want new cl-What the hell?" There was a new set of clothes in my hands.

I smirked. "Magic, remember?" I tweaked his nose. "Now, excuse me." I made a shooing gesture. Slowly, Raphael and Derek exit the tent. I sighed. Boys. I scanned the area. The coast was clear. I pulled off the shirt again.

I stared at my flawless, peaches-and-cream skin. Was this some sort of subconscious glamour? I ran a finger over the pale stomach before me. Smooth, warm and…ticklish. I giggled. My hand sought out the claw scars decorating my arms. All I felt was baby smooth skin. I couldn't see my back, but I could feel its smoothness. There was no ridged skin. No rough patches. Old bruises that never healed and burn marks – gone. All _gone._ I felt like crying, for some reason. I rubbed my dry eyes. I wasn't scarred anymore, so what? I was still messed up inside. I saw my swords leaning at the corner. I picked up one, unsheathed it, and ran it lightly over my left wrist.

Crimson pearls beaded out of the open wound. My eyes blurred with tears. Somehow, somewhere, I was healed. I was going to _live._ Ana wasn't going to lose me. Derek wasn't going to lose me. Raphael wasn't going to lose me. My father wasn't going to lose me.

"They will, you know. Eventually." A soft, female voice assured my worst nightmares.

My hand was already thrusting backwards by the time I realized it. A small woman stood a hair's breadth away from the sharpest edge of my knife. I would've called her a girl, except her proportion was adult-sized. She was naturally dark-skinned, with a wide and round face, and stunning brown eyes. Her built was slender, but not soft. There was strength to her limbs and torso. She looked well fed, and glowed with happiness despite the frown lines on her forehead. I was jealous, I realized. Not because she was skinny – those women make me want to hurl. She looked as if she'd been loved every day of her life, and never left wanting for food. More than that, I was impressed by the lack of fear in her brown eyes. Dali, James Damael Shrapshire's mate. I couldn't fault his choice.

"What?" I asked. Thank god I hadn't removed the silence circle surrounding the tent.

"I only managed to stave off the inevitable for the time being," Dali told me. "What you see there is a combination of my mother and Doolittle's medicinal teachings." She knew, then.

"How long?" I asked instead. Dali blinked.

" 'How long?'" She quoted me. "How can you be so-" Dali waved her hands wildly. "-so normal about it? You're going to _die_, Seleyda. Not every fifteen-year-old gets that sort of news every day."

"Fourteen," I corrected. I smiled as I sheathed the sword. "I'm fourteen, but thanks for the compliment. As for your second question, I know I'm going to die. I've known that for a very long time. But, you haven't answer my question."

"Eighteen months. Maybe less." A year and a half. More than I'd ever hoped for. I had Dali, her mother and Dr. George Doolittle to thank.

"Thank you."

_"Don't thank me!"_ Dali shouted at me. "I'm going to be forced to watch you die! Just as Raphael and Derek will!" I flinched, although I had considered the fact. "Do you _know_ how much this will hurt them?" Her hands fisted by her side. "Is this how Doolittle felt when he was healing Kate?" She half-murmured to herself. I was her first patient. Oh, holy crap.

"I know." I pulled on my underwear. "There is nothing I can do to change the fact that I am going to die. I can only live with it. But thank you, for letting giving me more time."

"More time? How is eighteen months more time?"

"Before today, I only had nine months to live. Six, because of all the magic I used to fortify this place. Now I have double the time." Her brown skin went pale.

"So the more magic you use, the faster you run out of time?" I could feel her struggle to understand the situation. "Is it a curse or something? Parasite?"

I stilled. "Something like that. I haven't found a cure for it yet." I doubt I ever will. I pulled on the green shirt and dark pants.

"Doesn't mean there isn't one out there." I almost smiled. So stubborn. Just like my Ana. I noticed the line on my wrist. It was still there. Dali was right. I didn't have time to live. "Is it something that messed with Lycos-V?" I stilled, the sword in my hand. "Because the cut on your wrist should've been gone by now."

"Yes. The virus…messes up my body. My body is constantly fighting it, to reach its own chemical balance, so my healing abilities aren't as strong as most people." Bullshit. My regeneration ability's the only thing keeping me from the grave. I healed slower because I didn't have magic in my body. Dying tends to do that to you. My hair fell to the front of my face. Dark, straight, and pulsing with magic. Suddenly, my stomach growled.

"Would you like something to eat?" Dali questioned.

"No, but thanks. I can hunt while I'm out. I'll go check out the enemy's numbers. Stay here and make sure everyone listens. I'll be back late afternoon." I walked past her through the tent flaps. She grabbed my arm. "Dali?"

"I will tell them," she insisted. "About your condition."

"No you won't," I added quietly. "Because you're hoping that I will, and for there to be a chance for me to live longer." Dali lets go of me.

I left the tent with dry eyes and a crying heart. Raphael and Derek were nowhere in sight. Instead, two dark-haired, black-eyed boys waited for me. They were dressed to kill. I sighed.

"Sharpen your claws, boys. We're going to hell."

**A/N: That was fast. Hope you guys like Dali, Raphael and Derek in the story. Thanks for you support and please, as always, R&R! LOVE YOU ALLz!**


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